This week, Book Flap (your every-other-Friday book news column) has all the latest news about books becoming movies, new series by favorite authors, and all the book news you need to know! It's all part of our first Summer on the Splot!
Roald Dahl Month and Mr. Fox at the Movies
September is Roald Dahl month. Why September? Well, the late author of such favorites as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach, Matilda, and The Witches, among others, was born September 13, 1916. The Roald Dahl website, http://www.roalddahl.com/, has plenty of games and printables to celebrate with. And, what better way to celebrate than by picking up one of his books to read?
And while it's not quite September yet, you can also get excited about his books by getting excited for the upcoming Fantastic Mr. Fox movie. The stop-motion movie, based on Dahl's book of the same title, will be in theaters November 13. The movie is chock-full of famous voices, including George Clooney as the voice of Mr. Fox, Meryl Streep as the voice of Mrs. Fox, and even Michael Gambon (Dumbledore!) as Franklin Bean.
Kate DiCamillo Writes Another Big Screen Book
The past few years have seen Kate DiCamillo's novels make a big splash on the big screen. Because of Winn-Dixie led the way in 2005, and The Tale of Despereaux followed in 2008. Now, DiCamillo's upcoming book, The Magician's Elephant is next in line. Fox will be making it into a feature film. The book doesn't come out until September, but you can get a sneak peek at the first chapter on DiCamillo's website, www.katedicamillo.com.
Snicket's Second Series
Not much news on it yet, but I'm excited to report that Lemony Snicket is working on a new series. Snicket's first series, A Series of Unfortunate Events, told the story of the three Baudelaire orphans, Violet, Klaus, and Sunny. As for the new series, Snicket had this to say: “I can neither confirm nor deny that I have begun research into a new case, and I can neither confirm nor deny that the results are as dreadful and unnerving as A Series of Unfortunate Events.”
More Light From Shel Silverstein
You've probably already read Shel Silverstein's book of poems, A Light in the Attic (and if you haven't, why not?!? You so should!). But as of next month, you won't have read all of it. A new special edition is being released with 12 never before published poems and 10 never before seen drawings.
And I'll leave you with a fun fact (because who doesn't love fun facts?)—A Light in the Attic was the first children's book to make it to the New York Times bestseller list.
Tasty
tidbits on your celebrity faves! From Gerri Miller, for the Ink Splot 26 Celeb Beat
Hello and welcome to POP-Corn,
your source for cool news from the world of entertainment. You may remember
the POP-Corn column from Scholastic News Online. Well, this
summer it's on The Splot! We'll be bringing you a new jam-packed edition every
other week, so be sure to tune in every other Friday all through the summer!
(And on the other Fridays, STACKS Staffers will be posting their own Book Flap
columns clueing you in to all the latest happenings with your favorite books,
series, authors, and page-to-screen adaptations. It's all part of our first Summer on
The Splot!)
TEEN CHOICE AWARDS
REPORT: BEHIND THE SCENES SCOOP!
Hannah Montana,
The Jonas Brothers and Twilight were the big winners at the
Teen Choice Awards, where stars walked the eco-friendly green carpet and
nominees hoped to take home surfboard trophies.Zac Efron snagged two of them
for High School Musical 3 and 17 Again, adding to his collection. "I
hang them in my garage above my car," he said. Right now he's working on The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud.It's a mix of drama, romance, suspense and
the supernatural that'll hit theaters next year.
On the green carpet, Wizards
of Waverly Place's Jake T. Austin
was an excited nominee for Choice TV Sidekick, as was iCarly's Jennette McCurdy.
They lost to Emily Osment of Hannah Montana, but Jennette has other
news to celebrate: she just signed a record deal with Nashville's Capitol Records for her debut
album, due next year. Emily, meanwhile, has her own album in the works for
spring 2010 but you can hear the single "All the Way Up" on Radio Disney, see
the video for it starting August 24th, and get her EP in October.
Emily describes her sound as "a very wide spectrum of pop."
Em's castmate Jason
Earles told us about the fun he had during his summer hiatus on trips to
Hawaii and to the Caribbean on a Disney Summer at Sea cruise, and Josh Hutcherson said he was about to
begin filming a remake of the action movie Red
Dawn. He's been reading a lot of scripts, so he's behind on the Twilight book series, "But all my
friends have read it so I have to get up to speed," he said. Nathan Kress of iCarly was looking forward to studying American literature this
fall in school, and he told us why he loves to read here in this exclusive
video.
Castmate Jennette
McCurdy's favorite book list includes Cyrano
De Bergerac, the Lord of the Rings series,
and of course, Harry Potter. "Too bad
the movies have already been made because I would have loved to play Luna
Lovegood," she confided. "I was her for Halloween one year."
While at Teen Choice, lots of celebs visited the Backstage
Creations Bop It Celebrity Retreat, where they picked up gift bags, played
games like the Band Hero video game and the hand-held Bop It. High scorer Shailene Woodley of Secret Life of the American Teenager won
$10,000 for her favorite charity. They also designed and signed Office Depot
backpacks to donate to sick kids at the City of Hope hospital. Abigail Breslin of My
Sister's Keeper and Jordin Sparks,
whose friend Wendy battled cancer, were two stars that showed off their
decorating skills. For the chance to design your own and win a prize, visit Project Backpack.
Jordin, Abigail, Brenda
Song, Emily Osment and Jennette
McCurdy loved the colorful neoprene bags by California Leash Co., and Debby Ryan and Jennifer Stone snapped up the clever Snap Caps necklaces and hair
accessories made from bottle caps. First created by 13-year-old Maddie Bradshaw three years ago, the
hand-painted caps are magnetic and interchangeable and include a special
edition rainbow design she made to benefit the Make-a-Wish Foundation.
Enterprising Maddie wants to go to Princeton,
Harvard or Stanford when she graduates and she'll probably have her pick!
ROCKIT GUY: AUSTIN
BUTLER
"I'm having such a
blast," Austin Butler raves about
playing Jordan on ABC Family's Ruby and the Rockits,
but he almost didn't audition for the role. "I wasn't going to go to the
audition because I didn't sing," he reveals, but his manager insisted, "and
somehow I got the role." The singing is coming easier now, and the guitar and
piano playing were no problem. "I've been playing guitar for about six years
and piano for a long time too," says Austin,
previously known as Zippy on Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide, James
Garrett on Zoey 101, and who can be seen in theaters as Jake in Aliens in the
Attic. So, does the 18-year-old native Californian want to record an album
now?"I don't know. I'm taking it one
step at a time," he says. "I am loving music though. And it's a great stress
reliever!"
WHAT TO WATCH
Alex's wish that her parents never met unleashes trouble in paradise in The Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie, which the cast shot in Puerto Rico. "It's everything you love about the show times ten," says Jennifer Stone (Harper). "There's comedy as well as drama and a ton of action—it's amazing how much action they fit into the movie. Anything that can make me feel like Angelina Jolie is cool by me!" It premieres Aug. 28th at 8 p.m. on Disney Channel.
Erica Hubbard has some scoop for us about the fourth season of Lincoln Heights. "Cassie is starting to design clothes this year," says Erica, who hints about a possible proposal from her boyfriend Charles later in the season. "There's a lot of drama before that. The relationship has its ups and downs," she says. Check out the premiere on ABC Family Sept. 14th at 8 p.m.
If you're up for a fun summer movie about the crazy stuff that happens when things you wish for come true, check out the new movie Shorts. Trevor Gagnon of TV's The New Adventures of Old Christine plays one of the kids who finds a magic rock at the end of a rainbow. "It grants wishes to anybody who holds it," says Trevor. "Neighborhood kids get the rock, then the adults get it, and the kids have to team up to stop the adults before the world crumbles." It's in theaters August 21st (Rated PG).
Find out which family wins $100,000 in the finale of The Great American Road Trip August 24th at 8 p.m. on NBC, which airs the season finale of Merlin at 8 p.m. on August 23rd. Hannah Montana: The Movie is now out on DVD, and Greek returns to ABC Family for its third season on August 31st at 9 p.m.
Tasty tidbits on your celebrity faves! From Gerri Miller, for the Ink Splot 26 Celeb Beat
Hello and welcome to POP-Corn,
your source for cool news from the world of entertainment. You may remember
the POP-Corn column from Scholastic News Online. Well, this
summer it's on The Splot! We'll be bringing you a new jam-packed edition every
other week, so be sure to tune in every other Friday all through the summer!
(And on the other Fridays, STACKS Staffers will be posting their own Book Flap
columns clueing you in to all the latest happenings with your favorite books,
series, authors, and page-to-screen adaptations. It's all part of our first Summer on
The Splot!)
DISNEY CELEBS HELP TEENS
Singing songs from her new Guilty Pleasure CD, Ashley
Tisdale joined cast members from Disney Channel's Wizards of Waverly Place and Sonny
With a Chance at a benefit for Los Angeles Team Mentoring, the largest
mentoring program in Los Angeles middle schools. "It's a program for kids who can't necessarily achieve because
they're from disadvantaged homes," explained Wizards' David Henrie.
"It instills good qualities in kids and a good work ethic to achieve their
dreams."
"To inspire kids to become better people is such an
important thing," added his castmate Jennifer
Stone. "I think everybody needs a role model at this time when they're
morphing into the person they're going to be for the rest of their lives."Selena
Gomez, Jake T. Austin, Sterling Knight, Tiffany Thornton and Allisyn Arm were on hand too. "I think
it's very important for kids to have a role model in life," said Allisyn,
"somebody who will help them make the right decisions and help them pursue
their dreams."
For Tiffany, that person was her grandfather, who always
told her to "run the race to win, don't ever quit." And for Ashley, it was a
teacher. "She wasn't always supportive because I was in and out of school, but
she definitely challenged me and in a way she guided me throughout school. When
I graduated I remember I was walking down and she screamed out my name. She was
so proud of me. It was a really touching moment."
WHAT TO WATCH &
HEAR
Who'll take home the surfboards this year? Find out when the
Jonas Brothers host the Teen Choice Awards, August 10th
at 8 p.m. on Fox. Nominees Miley Cyrus
and The Black Eyed Peas perform on
the star-studded show.
In related — literally! — Jonas
and Cyrus news, Miley's brother Noah and the youngest Jonas, Frankie, both lend their voices to the
new animated movie Ponyo, which hits
theaters August 14th. The G-rated movie is about a goldfish princess
who longs to become human, and the little boy who befriends her.
High School Musical's
Vanessa Hudgens and Aly Michalka of Aly & A.J. star in the new movie Bandslam, about a high school battle of the bands competition. The
PG-13 musical flick opens August 14th. Meanwhile, HSM-er Zac Efron's movie 17 Again
comes out on DVD August 11th.
Victoria Justice
(Zoey 101) guest stars in a special
one-hour iCarly movie event called iFight Shelby Marx, premiering August 8th at 8 p.m. on Nickelodeon. Victoria plays a
mixed martial arts champ named Shelby who Carly (Miranda Cosgrove) jokingly challenges to a match — and Shelby takes her up on it!
Meet the cast of Glee this summer at a mall near you! Stars of
the Fox musical series are traveling around the country this summer to meet
fans at Hot Topic stores and give a sneak peek at the new season of Glee, which premieres September 9th on Fox.The mall tour kicks off August
17th in Boston. Go to Fox.com/Glee for the dates and places.
The season two premiere of The Suite Life On Deck marks the debut of new regular Larramie 'Doc' Shaw as Marcus Little, a
former member of a singing group who was kicked out when his voice changed.
He's trying to make a fresh start as a solo singer on the S.S. Tipton. Not new
to the series — he was on House of Payne — Doc
has had smooth sailing from the start as the new guy on Suite Life. “When I got there everybody was really open and was
treating me like I was family. So I wasn't nervous at all.” But he's had to
have singing and dancing lessons for the role. “I'm liking it,” he says. American Idol winner Jordin Sparks will perform on the show
later this season.
The game show Who
Wants to Be a Millionaire? is back in prime time this month for 11 nights,
and each show will feature one celebrity guest trying to answer a single
question to win $50,000 for their favorite charity. Gymnast Shawn Johnson will
be on the August 13th episode.
"Send it On," the inspiring anthem for Disney's "Friends for Change: Project
Green," performed by Miley Cyrus, Jonas Brothers, Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato,
will debut today on Radio Disney. The "Send it On" music video premieres August 14th on Disney Channel, and August 15th on
Disney.com and the ABC Television Network.
That's it for this edition of POP-Corn! Don't forget to
check back August 21st for more celebrity scoop!
This week, Book Flap (your every-other-Friday book news column) has all the latest news about upcoming books, books becoming movies, and more! It's all part of our first Summer on the Splot!
Diary of a Wimpy Kid Movie & Series Update
Back in February, we brought you the news that Jeff Kinney's best selling series, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, was being made into a movie. Well now I've got one better—the stars of the movie!
The main character and diary-keeper, Greg Heffley, will be played by Zachary Gordon, who's previously acted in movies like National Treasure: Book of Secrets, and played the voice of Baby Melman in Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa. Rachel Harris will play Greg's mom.
But you don't need to wait for the movie to get your next Diary of a Wimpy Kid fix. The fourth book in the series, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days, comes out October 12th. To get ready for the book's release while everyone is still enjoying the dog days of summer, there will be a Diary of a Wimpy Kid-themed Ice Cream Truck visiting libraries across the country in the Summer Reading Coast-to-Coast Ice Cream Truck Tour. To see if it's stopping near you, check out the Wimpy Kid website.
Rats of NIMH Scurrying to the Movies
Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH might be the next classic children's book to make its way to Hollywood. Paramount is in development of a movie based on Robert C. O'Brien's 1971 book. The book tells the story of Mrs. Frisby, a mouse who works to save her home in the field from being destroyed by a plowing farmer, with help from escaped laboratory rats. The story was already adapted to film in 1982 as an animated movie called The Secret of NIMH. But there's no word yet about what the new movie will be like.
What would you rather see—animation or live action?
He Speaks for the Trees on the Big Screen
Dr. Seuss fans know it's the Lorax that speaks for the trees in the environmentally minded book, The Lorax. And now the Lorax is taking his message to the movies. Universal and Illumination Entertainment, the people who brought you the Horton Hears a Who movie, are making The Lorax adaptation, with plans for it to hit theaters March 2, 2012. Why that date? It would have been Dr. Seuss's 108th birthday!
Twilight Cast Change
No Book Flap would be complete without an update on what is happening in Twilight World. Planning for the third movie is underway. Eclipse, based on the third book in the series for ages 12 and up by Stephenie Meyer, brings with it a cast change for Victoria, the nomadic vampire with a grudge against Bella. Rachelle Lefevre who played Victoria in Twilight and New Moon will be replaced by Bryce Dallas Howard in Eclipse.
Check back on August 14th for another edition of Book Flap!
Tasty tidbits on your celebrity faves! From Gerri Miller, for the Ink Splot 26 Celeb Beat
Hello and welcome to POP-Corn, your source for cool news from the world of entertainment. You may remember the POP-Corn column from Scholastic News Online. Well, this summer it's on The Splot! We'll be bringing you a new jam-packed edition every other week, so be sure to tune in every other Friday all through the summer! (And on the other Fridays, STACKS Staffers will be posting their own Book Flap columns clueing you in to all the latest happenings with your favorite books, series, authors, and page-to-screen adaptations. It's all part of our first Summer on The Splot!)
ASHLEY & THE ALIENS
What would you do if aliens invaded your summer vacation house, turned your boyfriend into a remote-controlled zombie robot, and planned to take over the world? That's what Ashley Tisdale has to deal with in the new adventure movie Aliens in the Attic. In the movie, opening July 31st with a PG rating, Ashley plays Bethany, who finds out she's got bigger problems than a lying boyfriend (Robert Hoffman) when four little space creatures (including one voiced by Drake & Josh'sJosh Peck) land on her house.
Although she wasn't there as long as the other actors because of her High School Musical 3 shooting schedule, Ashley had a great time shooting the movie in Auckland, New Zealand. "Every weekend we were going to a different island or going to a different beach and hanging out. The whole cast would hang out all the time, so it was definitely a lot of fun," says Ashley, who went with castmates to see fave band Goodnight Nurse in concert while she was there.
Ashley's own music career is hotter than ever, with the release of her second album Guilty Pleasure on July 28th. "There are a lot of break-up songs," says Ashley, who co-wrote four of the CD's tunes. "It's very personal—everything behind the album is all my idea," she says. "Switch," one of the tracks, is also on the Aliens soundtrack. She plans to do a concert tour to support the album, probably in Europe first.
Between looking for her next acting role and projects to produce, Ashley took time out to appear on an upcoming episode of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition with the Hampton family of Missouri. "The kids really wanted to meet me as one of their wishes, so I'm going down there to design part of their room, and then also do a concert with my band," she explains.
Ashley has seen her own wishes come true in Hollywood. "At a young age I did not know I'd be where I am today. I was doing commercials and modeling but I always dreamt of doing movies and TV shows," she says. "I've always been very driven," she confides. "And even though I've been in the business for so long and I've had a lot of success with the High School Musical movies I still feel that my career has just begun."
She hopes she can set a good example for kids who want to achieve their goals. "Don't ever limit yourself," she declares. "Keep going no matter what and don't let anybody tell you otherwise. With hard work, you'll definitely get there!"
Find out what Ashley and co-star Robert Hoffman have to say about Aliens in the Attic in this exclusive video!
Want to know why Ashley and Robert love to read? Get the scoop in this video:
This week, Book Flap (your every-other-Friday book news column) has all the latest news about books becoming movies, TV shows becoming books, and even a book-based Broadway play! It's all part of our first Summer on the Splot!
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Now in Paperback!
This Tuesday, the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows became a little bit lighter to carry around in your backpack, because it came out in paperback! The Scholastic Store honored the event with a magic celebration! You can get the whole scoop on the party right here on Ink Splot 26.
Jeopardy! Warrior
In a three-episode run, from Friday, June 26th to Tuesday June 30th, children's book author Tui Sutherland raked in the big bucks on Jeopardy! Tui Sutherland is one of the authors who writes the Warriors series under the pen name Erin Hunter, and most recently started a series called Pet Trouble about dogs that just don't behave.
A lifelong fan of the show, Tui took the online test to be a contestant in January 2008. She did well enough that she moved to the next round of casting, participating in a rehearsal game for the producers of the show. It took almost a whole year to hear back, but in February of this year she got the call; she would be on the show! Tui taped her episodes in March and had to keep the results a secret until they aired at the end of June.
For two days, Tui won. Then on her third day, she came in second behind a school librarian.
And if you're asking for proof that her stint on Jeopardy! was a dream come true? The fourth book in Pet Trouble: Smarty Pants Shelty coming out in 2010, features a dog named Jeopardy. If you can't wait to read about Jeopardy the dog, check out the first three books in the series:Runaway Retriever, Loudest Beagle on the Block, and Mud-Puddle Poodle.
More Dancing Dogs
Last Book Flap, I talked about how Because of Winn Dixie is being made into a Broadway show and now more dogs are hitting the stage, 101 more dogs to be exact. 101 Dalmations is going to Broadway. The story of Cruella de Vil's Dalmatian dognapping started life as a novel by Dodie Smith in 1957. It became a Disney animated film in 1961 and then a live action film in 1996. And soon you'll be able to see 101 Dalmatians: The Musical.
Check back on July 31st for another edition of Book Flap!
Tasty tidbits on your celebrity faves! From Gerri Miller, for the Ink Splot 26 Celeb Beat
Hello and welcome to POP-Corn, your source for cool news from the world of entertainment. You may remember the POP-Corn column from Scholastic News Online. Well, this summer it's on The Splot! We'll be bringing you a new jam-packed edition every other week, so be sure to tune in every other Friday all through the summer! (And on the other Fridays, STACKS Staffers will be
posting their own Book Flapcolumns clueing you in to all the latest happenings with your favorite books, series, authors, and page-to-screen adaptations. It's all part of our firstSummer on The Splot!)
HARRY POTTER IS BACK!
Harry Potter fans, your two-year wait is finally over: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the sixth film adaptation in your favorite book series, hits theaters July 15th! As the story moves towards its two-part Deathly Hallows conclusion in 2010 and 2011, Harry will learn a lot more about Lord Voldemort’s past as his mentor Dumbledore prepares him for the confrontation to come. Meanwhile, there’s Quidditch to play and some new romances at Hogwarts. Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) has a new relationship with Ron Weasley’s (Rupert Grint) little sister Ginny (Bonnie Wright) and Hermione (Emma Watson) becomes jealous of Lavender Brown’s (Jessie Cave) attention toward Ron.
“These characters are usually facing such huge issues, like fighting evil, so it’s easy to forget that they’re just teenagers,” says Emma. “This film feels more like a romantic comedy than the others, in the sense that we get to see them coping with first love, jealousy and insecurity and all the usual things involved in dating.”
ABC Family will catch you up with the previous Potter flicks starting on July 10th at 7:30 p.m. with Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, repeated July 11th at 12:30 p.m. followed by Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets at 4 p.m., and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban at 8 p.m. On July 12th, Chamber will air at 12:30 p.m., followed by Prisoner at 4:30 p.m. and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire at 7:30 p.m. Then find out about Potter’s creator in an ABC special about the author titled J.K. Rowling: A Year in the Life, airing July 16th at 8 p.m.
For a sneak peek at The Half-Blood Prince including behind-the-scenes interviews, check out this featurette:
ALEXA VEGA’S RUBY ROCKS
Alexa Vega got to sing a bit in Spy Kids and later played Penny Pingleton on stage in the Broadway musical Hairspray. Now she’s singing again in the new ABC Family series Ruby & the Rockits, playing a teenager named Ruby who goes to live with her rock star dad (David Cassidy) and his brother’s family. Acting is her first love. “But I’ve been really fortunate that music has been a part of my life,” says Alexa, who remembers growing up watching David in The Partridge Family on TV. Now 20, she’ll turn 21 August 27th and she hopes to celebrate with her family on a trip to Disney World or the Bahamas. Catch the premiere of Ruby & the Rockits on July 21st at 8:30 p.m.
WHAT TO WATCH AND HEAR
Sonny With a Chance star Demi Lovato will release her new album Here We Go Again on July 17th and will make several TV appearances to promote it. That day, Demi will visit The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien, and guest on both Good Morning America and The View on July 23. We’ve got some scoop for you on Camp Rock 2, which will once again star Demi, the Jonas Brothers, Meaghan Jette Martin and Alyson Stoner. This time, there’s a rival camp that challenges the kids to a musical showdown, and a love story involving Nate (Nick Jonas) and the piano-playing daughter of the rival camp owner, portrayed by Chloe Bridges. Cameras start rolling this summer on the movie, which will air on Disney Channel next year.
Three Disney Channel series join forces in Wizards on Deck with Hannah Montana, a crossover event featuring the casts of Hannah Montana, The Suite Life on Deck and Wizards of Waverly Place. It airs July 17th at 8 p.m.
Willow Smith, Will Smith’s daughter, will guest star on a special one-hour episode of Nickelodeon’s True Jackson, VP on July 25th at 8 p.m. She’ll play a younger version of True in flashback scenes.
Nickelodeon will celebrate SpongeBob SquarePants’ 10-year anniversary with The Ultimate SpongeBob SquarePants Weekend July 17-19. It includes a marathon of fan-picked episodes, a countdown of celebrity-chosen episodes, and 11 premieres.
The new comedy series The Assistants, the N’s new show set behind the scenes in Hollywood, will follow new episodes of Degrassi: The Next Generation on Friday nights. It premieres July 10 at 8:30 p.m. with two back-to-back episodes that will repeat July 12 at 9 p.m. on Nick at Nite.
That’s it for this edition of POP-Corn! Don’t forget to check back July 24th for more celebrity scoop!
This week, Book Flap (your every-other-Friday book news column) has all the latest news about books becoming movies, TV shows becoming books, and even a book-based Broadway play! It's all part of our first Summer on the Splot!
Alice in Wonderland
Last week, the first look at the newest live action Alice in Wonderland movie was released to USA Today.
Lewis Carroll's classic book, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, has been adapted for film over 20 times since the first silent film in 1903. The most famous of the adaptations is probably the Disney animated movie from 1951. This latest version is directed by Tim Burton, who lent his trademark surreal style to another classic children's book adaptation, Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, in 2005.
The upcoming movie will star Johnny Depp (whom you might know as Captain Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Caribbean) as the Mad Hatter, Helena Bonham Carter (Belatrix Lestrange from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince) as the Red Queen, and Anne Hathaway (Mia Thermopolis from The Princess Diaries) as the White Queen.
Looks like a great cast! The only downside is the wait — Burton's Alice in Wonderland doesn't hit theaters until March 2010. But at least we can look at some early artwork and photos! Let me know what you think!
Because of Winn-Dixie
A singing and dancing dog?! It's not as crazy as it sounds. Kate DiCamillo's Newbery Honor book Because of Winn-Dixie is being adapted as a Broadway musical. And a real dog is going to be playing the title character!
We had trouble teaching my dog not to eat out of the garbage, so I'm sure that will be some sight to see! Do any of you have any star-worthy (or particularly troublesome) pets?
The Secret Saturdays
The Cartoon Network cartoon series, The Secret Saturdays, is making the jump from your television onto the pages of a book. This August, everything you've ever wanted to know about yetis, chupachabras, and tons of other cryptids will be right at your fingertips with the release of The Official Cryptid Field Guide, a Secret Saturdays' encyclopedia. And this fall, you can join Doc, Drew, and Zak Saturday on their cryptozoology missions in a brand new graphic novel series.
My favorite cryptid's always been the Loch Ness Monster. What's yours?
LEGO® Star Wars™: The Visual Dictionary
This October, get ready for a new visual dictionary . . . and a possible Storm Trooper invasion! On October 5th, Star Wars fans and LEGO enthusiasts alike can get their hands on LEGO Star Wars: The Visual Dictionary by Simon Beecroft. The book will be chock full of photos and facts on everything from the characters and accessories to the manufacturing and construction of the figurines.
And across the country, people will be celebrating the book's release with in-store parties in both book stores and LEGO stores — complete with trivia contests, giveaways, raffle prizes (including the limited-edition LEGO Star Wars Chrome Darth Vader figure), and visits by the 501st Legion (the world's definitive volunteer Imperial — aka Star Wars bad guys — costuming organization).
The book will come with an exclusive, never-before-released LEGO Star Wars figure. The character for the mini-figure will be announced this July — give me your best guess who it will be in the comments!
Go Mutants!
Sometimes a book sounds so cool, it gets optioned for a movie even before it's come out. That's what's happened with Larry Doyle's upcoming book, Go Mutants! The book, which Doyle is writing this summer along side the movie script, will ask the what-if question we are all dying to know: What if all the aliens and monsters in 1950s horror movies really did invade Earth in the 1950s? Doyle's answer to the question: Of course, all of those aliens would have gotten married and had half-monster-half-human kids who have regular lives and go to regular boring school and are just like you or me . . . just a little more monster-ish.
Since the book won't be out until next summer, tell me what you think: do monsters make good classmates?
And that's how you can watch your favorite books! Check back on July 17th for another edition of Book Flap!
Tasty tidbits on your celebrity faves! From Gerri Miller, for the Ink Splot 26 Celeb Beat
Hello and welcome to POP-Corn, your source for cool news from the world of entertainment. You may remember the POP-Corn column from Scholastic News Online. Well, this summer it's on The Splot! We'll be bringing you a new jam-packed edition every other week, so be sure to tune in every other Friday all through the summer! (And on the other Fridays, STACKS Staffers will be posting their own Book Flap columns clueing you in to all the latest happenings with your favorite books, series, authors, and page-to-screen adaptations. It's all part of our first Summer on The Splot!)
THINGS TO LOVE ABOUT 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU
You're sure to recognize the two stars of the new ABC Family series 10 Things I Hate About You — Lindsey Shaw was Moze in Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide, and Meaghan Jette Martin played Tess in Camp Rock. Now they're playing very different sisters Kat (Katerina) and Bianca Stratford in the TV adaptation of the movie 10 Things I Hate About You, which was itself based on Shakespeare's play The Taming of the Shrew. Meaghan has been reading the original play, and says, “It's interesting to see how Shakespeare portrayed the characters because they're so similar to the movie and TV show. It's the same plotline and a great structure to build on.”
Kat, the older sister, “is tough and independent and has an outside view on things, always kind of looking in,” describes Lindsey. “She often gets caught up in her strive for justice and fairness and misses the small things that are going on around her in high school.” Lindsey relates to Kat a lot, even though she has no siblings in real life. “I was always on the outside looking in at things I thought were silly, or I did not fit into, or wanted to fit into so badly but didn't,” adds Lindsey, who thinks Kat is a great role model. “She gives girls the opportunity to see somebody who is completely independent, intelligent, and speaks her mind. I hope they see somebody they want to be.”
After Camp Rock, Meaghan is thrilled to play a sweet, though popularity-obsessed, girl. “Finally I get to be nice and intelligent and a good human being,” she laughs. “The popularity shallowness isn't so great, but it's okay because she's learning from her mistakes.” As the team mascot, “I get to wear a penguin suit a lot on the show,” says Meaghan, who was a “drama nerd” when she was in high school. She has one older sister who's in medical school, and like Kat and Bianca, they fight. “But in the end we love each other,” confides Meaghan, who'll film Camp Rock 2 at the end of the summer.
Ethan Peck, the grandson of Hollywood legend Gregory Peck, plays bad boy Patrick Verona, who has a love-hate relationship with Kat. In his high school days, Ethan claims he was “a dork, really shy and insecure and nervous, and on the outside because of that.” Also in the cast is Nicholas Braun as Cameron, who has a crush on Bianca — he's a veteran of the Disney Channel movies Minutemen (airing July 4th at noon) and the new Princess Protection Program.
10 Things I Hate About You premieres on ABC Family on July 7th at 8 p.m.
CATCHING UP WITH SELENA GOMEZ
Yesterday, in an exclusive interview with Scholastic, Selena Gomez talked about her new Disney Channel movie Princess Protection Program and working on it with BFF Demi Lovato. I got the chance to catch up with Selena, and got a few more tasty scoops for you!
Selena thinks she "looked 12" in the movie, but had fun working on it with Demi. Selena's favorite scene? The montage when they tried on lots of fancy dresses.
Her character Carter's dad owns a bait shop, but Selena didn't mind working with the slimy-looking bait. "It was fake,” she reveals. “It smelled more like plastic than anything. It was no big deal!"
Selena, who'll start shooting the third season of Wizards of Waverly Place in early July, went to Puerto Rico to shoot the Wizards of Waverly Place Movie, which will air on Disney Channel in August. “I think you're going to see a lot of more serious sides to all of our characters in it,” she says.
Selena loves to get lost in romantic novels. "I love that you can kind of just put yourself into that place for a moment and nothing else around matters," she explains. She's thrilled about starring in the movie version of Ramona and Beezus because she read Beverly Cleary's books in the third grade. "What's really neat is kids are now reading it over again or for the first time because of the movie," she says.
Selena and Demi host the premiere of Princess Protection Program on Disney Channel on June 26th at 8 p.m., giving sneak peaks at the Wizards movie and their music video for "One and the Same," which is included on the Princess Protection Program DVD (out June 30th). A new Wizards episode follows the movie at 9 p.m. on Friday, and Princess will air again June 27th at 8 p.m. and June 28th at 7 p.m.
WHAT TO WATCH & HEAR
Brooke Shields and Cody Linley guest star on a new episode of Hannah Montana on July 5th at 8 p.m. on Disney Channel, following a Hannah Montana marathon starting at 1 p.m. Every day between June 29th and July 3rd, a new video from the Season 3 soundtrack of Hannah Montana will premiere, and all five vids will air after the 8 p.m. episode on July 5th. The soundtrack hits stores July 7th. Miley is currently in Savannah, Georgia, shooting the movie The Last Song for release next year.
American Idol winner and runner-up Kris Allen and Adam Lambert both signed record deals with 19 Entertainment and will release albums this fall. You can catch them on the American Idol summer tour, kicking off July 5th in Portland, Oregon.
That's it for this edition of POP-Corn! Don't forget to check back July 10th for more celebrity scoop!
Welcome to the third edition of Book Flap, your every-other-week splot for all the hottest happenings in the world of books. All summer long, Fridays on Ink Splot will be chock-full of awesome, so make sure you check back every week: we've got more Book Flap alternating with POP-Corn (all the entertainment and celeb news you can sink your teeth into). It's all part of our first Summer on The Splot!
The 39 Clues News
Amy and Dan followed the clues to Egypt in The 39 Clues Book 4: Beyond the Grave by Jude Watson. But no one knows where they're headed next. Sounds like a job for investigative reporter and news anchor William Michaels! In a series of newscasts on the39clues.com, he'll uncomver evidence leading to Amy and Dan's next destination. His first hint came from an interview with author Jude Watson. Check it out:
And don't forget to join the hunt yourself! Throughout the summer, five new FREE digital cards will be released to help you on your search. Who knows? You might even be the first to catch up to Amy and Dan in their secret location!You can find out if your sleuthing took you to the right place on August 11th, when Book 5: The Black Circle by Patrick Carman comes out.
'Lunch Lady' and Other Books to Hit the Big Screen
The graphic novels aren't out yet (they hit bookshelves on July 28th), but Jarrett J. Krosoczka’s new series, Lunch Lady, has already been picked up by Universal Studios to be made into a movie.
The humorous series will kick off with two books: In Lunch Lady and the League of Librarians, the mystery-solving Lunch Lady notices something weird about the librarians. Instead of their usually friendly selves, they've turned mean and secretive. Lunch Lady is going to find out what dark forces are at work! In Lunch Lady and the Cyborg Substitute, it's a strange substitute teacher that spikes Lunch Lady's creepiness meter.
The Lunch Lady movie, set for a 2010 release date, will star the hilarious Amy Poehler (Blades of Glory, Saturday Night Live, Parks and Recreation).
Another book series heading to the movies is Ian Beck's The Secret History of Tom Trueheart trilogy. No director or stars are attached to the live-action feature film yet, but keep your eye out for the movie in mid-2010.
Next in the Series: New Books Coming Next Month
This July, a lot of your favorite series will have new books. Keep your eyes out for the following:
July 1
Candy Apple: Accidentally Friends by Lisa Papademetriou
Dinosaur Cove: Saving the Stegosaurus by Rex Stone
Goosebumps HorrorLand #12: Streets of Panic Park by R.L. Stine
Pet Trouble: Mud-Puddle Poodle by Tui T. Sutherland
(If you're pumped for the new Pet Trouble, check out our Summer Series Sweepstakes, where you can enter for a chance to win this and other great books!)
July 14
Camp Rock: Second Session: Stage Fright
Hannah Montana On Tour: Ciao from Rome! by Helen Perelman
Hannah Montana On Tour: G’day, Sydney! by M.C. King
JONAS: Keeping It Real by Lara Bergen
JONAS: Wild Hearts by Catherine Hapka
July 23
Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Captured by Rob Valois
July 28
Warriors Super Edition: Bluestar’s Prophecy by Erin Hunter
And that's what's shaking in the book world right now! On June 26th, you can catch POP-Corn right here for all your celebrity and entertainment news. And then check back on July 3rd for another edition of Book Flap. Until then, happy reading!
Tasty tidbits on your celebrity faves!
From Gerri Miller, for the Ink Splot 26 Celeb Beat
Hello and welcome to POP-Corn, your source for cool news from the world of entertainment. You may remember the POP-Corn column from Scholastic News Online. Well, this summer it's on The Splot! We'll be bringing you a new jam-packed edition every other week, so be sure to tune in every other Friday all through the summer! (And on the other Fridays, STACKS Staffers will be
posting their own Book Flap columns clueing you in to all the latest happenings with your favorite books, series, authors, and page-to-screen adaptations. It's all part of our first Summer on The Splot!)
TIFFANY GIARDINA: NO AVERAGE ANGEL
“The first time I heard 'No Average Angel' on the radio I freaked out. I was driving around blasting it,” declares Tiffany Giardina, who has a Radio Disney hit with the first single from her CD of the same name. “It's about being yourself, not being afraid to be different,” says Tiffany about the song, which she recently performed along with another tune, “Hurry Up and Save Me,” on a visit to Radio Disney with her band.
I was lucky enough to be there for the show — check out my on-the-spot (or should I say on-the-SPLOT) video footage:
Welcome to the second edition of Book Flap, your every-other-week splot for all the hottest happenings in the world of books. All summer long, Fridays on Ink Splot will be chock-full of awesome, so make sure you check back every week: we've got more Book Flap alternating with POP-Corn (all the entertainment and celeb news you can sink your teeth into). It's all part of our first Summer on The Splot!
Meet the New American Girl: Rebecca Rubin
Last December, I was crushed to find out they were retiring my favorite American Girl doll: Samantha Parkington, the rich orphan from 1904, who lived with her grandmother and was friends with the factory worker/servant girl next door. Well, now that I'm an adult, I have the means to right all the failed birthday presents from my parents growing up, so I immediately had to go buy Samantha for myself before she was gone forever. I thought that would be it.
But now there's a new girl in the American Girl ranks. On May 31st, Rebecca Rubin joined Kaya, Josefina, Kirsten, Addy, Kid, Molly, and Julie as the newest historical doll in the American Girl collection. Rebecca is 9 years old in 1914, when her story is set (fun fact: all the dolls are from years that end in 4).
Rebecca lives on New York City's Lower East Side with her siblings and Russian-Jewish immigrant parents and grandma, who is called Bubbie (the Yiddish word for Grandmother). Rebecca loves movies and wants to be an actress, but her parents don't approve. The books that accompany the doll deal with Rebecca balancing her dreams with the cultural and religious values of her family. The six books in Rebecca's story arc are written by Jacqueline Dembar Greene.
The Black Belt Club to Become a Cartoon
For all the boys out there who couldn't care less about dolls, here's something for you: The Black Belt Club series by real-life third-degree black belt Dawn Barnes is being made into an animated TV show!
The book series straddles the divide between traditional books and comics, with illustrations by Bernard Chang on virtually every page. The story follows four karate students — Max, Maia, Antonio, and Jamie — who are invited to be part of an elite group (surprise, surprise, it's called the Black Belt Club). Together, they are transported to a magical land filled with mythical heroes and monsters, but it's the Black Belt Club who are charged with saving the day.
On board to work on the show is John Drdek, a writer for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Yu-Gi-Oh!, plus the animation production studio Curious Pictures, who did Codename: Kids Next Door. The show will be hitting airwaves in 2010, at the same time the 4th book hits stores. In the meantime, you can get ready by checking out The Black Belt Club website and the first three books: #1: Seven Wheels of Power, #2: Night on the Mountain of Fear, and #3: Beware of the Haunted Eye.
Book Expo America
Last weekend was Book Expo America, a huge yearly gathering where authors, publishers, librarians, and anyone who has anything to do with books congregate in New York City to meet up and talk about what's coming up this year. I wasn't there (*tear*), but I've been following along, and two big items of children's book news caught my attention . . .
First, book-game-online-reading-writing-participating-multimedia extravaganzas are the way of the future. As all you Splot readers know, The 39 Clues is the first of this kind. In the ten-book series, you can follow the adventures of Amy and Dan Cahill as they search for the secret behind their family's power. And just this past Tuesday (June 2nd), the fourth book in the series, Beyond the Grave by Jude Watson, came out. After reading the books (or before, it doesn't actually matter), you can go on The39Clues.com and join the hunt yourself.
This week, Book Flap (your every-other-Friday book news column) has all the latest news about books becoming movies, new series by favorite authors, and all the book news you need to know! It's all part of our first Summer on the Splot!
Tasty
tidbits on your celebrity faves!
