Into the Woods (charcoal) by Ivory Vanover, 12; published in the May/June 2023 issue of Stone Soup A note from Laura Moran Greetings all, Happy spring and happy 50th anniversary of Stone Soup magazine! I hope you are all enjoying the May/June issue of Stone Soup as much as I am. As we approach spring and temperatures slowly climb in the Northeastern part of the United States, where I now live, I realize my seasonal preferences seem to have inexplicably shifted! Where I used to prefer summer, all vibrant colors, warm earth, and stepping outside without a coat, I now prefer the cooler months. Lately, I even favor the rainy, overcast days to the sunny ones. Perhaps it’s because my 14-year-old daughter tends to faint easily in warm weather and bright light, or perhaps it’s simply because I’m a homebody, and the rain affords a better excuse than any of the other weather events to curl up with a good book or the latest edition of Stone Soup! Or maybe it’s because, in the grips of climate change and alarming shifts in weather patterns, we didn’t have much of a winter this year. In any case, my daughter and I are reveling most in the spring rain. Sometimes we feel like we’re in a secret rainy-day club and need to conceal our preference for clouds. As she shared with me on a recent sunny day when the morning light streaked across her pillow to rouse her, “Everyone says it’s a beautiful day…well, I think it has a big nose!” Whatever your weather preference, you will be enchanted by Amber Zhao’s “Salt,” depicting Maroochydore and surrounding areas on Australia’s Sunshine Coast. Through strikingly vivid prose, Zhao renders the force and beauty of the natural world in its many incarnations. She writes: “That molten gold sun that traced a trail through the churning sea. The sea’s long, sorrowful moan threading into my sleep. The salt that crept into sandals, into sofas, into floorboards, into everything.” Read it, and the other gorgeously descriptive pieces in the latest issue of Stone Soup, and you will be transported. Speaking of being transported…another way to achieve this state, as Emma described in last week’s newsletter: visit the library! Please join us in honor of Stone Soup’s 50th anniversary in May and Library Week 2023, in our special fundraising drive to bring Stone Soup to more libraries across the world. In Refugee Project news, our current pen pal exchange with young people in Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya is currently underway. Our batch of fourteen letters successfully reached London, from whence they were brought to Kakuma Camp by our partner organization, My Start Project. We now anxiously await our return letters. To read more about Refugee Project initiatives, and our aim to unite young refugee artists and writers with our broader Stone Soup readership, please check out our recent publication in Zocalo Public Square. Warmly, Share the gift of Stone Soup with your community. Donate a subscription to a library of your choice today! A gift from us to you: half off annual print subscriptions! We wouldn’t be celebrating fifty years of Stone Soup were it not for all of our wonderful supporters like you. Thank you! As a small token of our gratitude, we’re offering half off annual print subscriptions for the entire month of May. Use code happy50 at checkout and read the magazine 100% written and illustrated by kids since 1973. Subscribe to the magazine! Celebrate Stone Soup’s 50th Anniversary with us! Stone Soup turns fifty this May! Join us Saturday, May 20 at 11 a.m. Pacific time at our Open House and Giveaway for an update on the company from Editor in Chief and Executive Director, Emma Wood; brief readings from recent magazine contributors; and an open discussion about what Stone Soup has meant to you and your family or classroom. Winners of the giveaway—which includes an annual subscription to Stone Soup and a one-on-one writing consultation with Emma Wood among other great prizes—will be announced during the live event. Register for our Open House and Giveaway Stone Soup is published by Children’s Art Foundation-Stone Soup Inc., a 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit organization registered in the United States of America, EIN: 23-7317498.
library
Saturday Newsletter: April 22, 2023
Tree Library (watercolor) by Li Lingfei, 10; published in the July/August 2019 issue of Stone Soup A note from Emma Wood Hello, again! Growing up, the public library was my summer haven. I would spend hours alone in the cool, air-conditioned lower level, discovering new books and reading them. It felt like a magical place, where all the sounds and worries of everyday life receded. Now, my daughter and my son are beginning to experience this special library magic as well; every week, they go to a free story time at the same library I frequented every summer as a child. When I tell my daughter we’re going to the library, she yelps with joy—“The library! Hooray!” And in turn, I have a new appreciation for all that libraries have to offer the communities they serve. So, this spring, I am excited to announce that, in honor of both Library Week 2023 and Stone Soup’s 50th anniversary in May, we are running a special fundraising drive to bring Stone Soup to more libraries across the world. From April 23 to May 20, 2023, all donations will go toward gifting a year’s print subscription to Stone Soup to a school or public library (of your choice, or ours!). Please help us celebrate Stone Soup and libraries by making the magazine available to more children across the country—and the world! Warmly, Celebrate National Library Week! Donate a subscription to a library of your choice today! Get your book published by Stone Soup! Stone Soup is thrilled to announce that we are accepting submissions for our annual book contest. This year we once again plan to accept two books for publication: one novel or short story collection and one book of poems. Read the full contest details below and get ready to write! Learn more about our annual book contest. Celebrate Stone Soup’s 50th Anniversary with us! Stone Soup turns fifty this May! Join us Saturday, May 20 at 11 a.m. Pacific time at our Open House and Giveaway for an update on the company from Editor in Chief and Executive Director, Emma Wood; brief readings from recent magazine contributors; and an open discussion about what Stone Soup has meant to you and your family or classroom. Winners of the giveaway—which includes an annual subscription to Stone Soup and a one-on-one writing consultation with Emma Wood among other great prizes—will be announced during the live event. Register for our Open House and Giveaway Stone Soup is published by Children’s Art Foundation-Stone Soup Inc., a 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit organization registered in the United States of America, EIN: 23-7317498.
Magnet Making
At the sound of the bell, I hurried out of class. I knew where I wanted to go, yet I hesitated remembering my conversation with my mom that morning. “Are you going to Chemistry Club during your free period?” she asked. “Maybe” I replied unenthusiastically. “There is also a craft in the library to make magnets with banned book quotes. I might go to that….” There was silence. “I can always go to Chemistry Club next week.” I added. Mom frowned. “Chemistry Club is a great opportunity, Maya.” She told me. “None of my friends will go.” I complained. “That doesn’t matter.” she said. “You should do what interests you, regardless of everyone else.” I didn’t reply. “You don’t know if your friends are going to magnet making either.” Mom pointed out. “Magnet making is fun even if I go alone.” I mumbled. Mom sighed. “Well, if I were you, I’d go to chemistry club, but you should do whatever you want” she ended the conversation. I knew what that meant… but I headed for the library. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I’m not interested in Chemistry Club. I am, and on a normal Friday, I’d be more then happy to go. It’s just that when I have the opportunity to go to a craft, it’s crystal clear to me that I should take it. That week I already went to Math Club, Investment Club, and Model UN. This was my chance. I couldn’t wait. I love crafts, decorating, and all the magnets we have on our fridge. What could be better then making magnets to decorate my locker? The library was packed when I got there. Students crowded around the tables, laughing and talking. I smiled. I hoped I hadn’t arrived too late. Had everyone already gotten started? I quickly walked in. But suddenly, I noticed something. One table was empty. And, that table was the only one with magnets, paper, and bottles of glue. Then I noticed that the students in the library had books in front of them. They were studying. There was no one else there to make magnets. I wasn’t sure what to do. Chemistry club was still happening upstairs. I could turn around and go there now. But I didn’t. I’d been too excited to give up that easily. One of the librarians came up to me. “Are you here to make magnets?” she asked. “Yes,” I whispered in an unsure voice. She smiled. “Is anyone here to make magnets?” she called to the entire library. No one moved. “Let me know when you are ready to use the glue gun.” She told me. “Make as many as you want!” I sat down at the table. I glanced through the papers. There were quotes from books, pictures of book covers, and pictures that say “I read banned books.” I couldn’t wait to start. The door opened behind me. I turned around and to my surprise my friend came in. I rarely see her because she’s not in my grade and is very busy with tons of activities. That’s why I hadn’t even asked her if she was coming to this event. “I’m so glad you’re here,” I said with happiness and relief when she joined me. “I’m the only one that came to make magnets.” “Really?” she asked in surprise. “No one wants to make magnets?” We spent the rest of the time laughing, cutting, and gluing. Magnet making had not disappointed me. My mom was right. I followed my heart, regardless of who came, and in the end I got rewarded.
