SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL: On the Shelf at LAPL

In the Social Science/Philosophy Department of LAPL with my book SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL.

A week ago I was at the Los Angeles Public Library in downtown Los Angeles and I went searching for my book SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL: Growing Up in the 1950s at North East Neighborhood House, Minneapolis, Minnesota. I knew it was in the collection, but I wanted to see it for myself. After riding down three escalators from the main library floor to the Social Science/Philosophy Department, I found it shelved with other books about the history of settlement houses and the social settlement movement (360.61). 

SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL is the thin blue book, 6th from the left.

SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL, (360.61A752), was on the top shelf, a few books after several about Jane Addams, the founder of Hull House in Chicago. Down three shelves I found books about Lillian Wald, founder of Henry Street Settlement in New York City. It was a good thing that my husband Art was with me to pull my book off the shelf, because I could barely reach it. It was gratifying to hold it in my hand and know that anyone coming to the library to learn about settlement houses or about my childhood living in one, will be able to find my book. I hope they are tall!

PRESENTATION OF THE FOCAL AWARD for SIMONE written by Viet Thanh Nguyen, illustrated by Minnie Phan

FOCAL Award Presentation at the Los Angeles Public Library to Viet Thanh Nguyen and Minnie Phan

On Saturday, May 30th, friends, family, and members of FOCAL (Friends of Children and Libraries) gathered at the Mark Taper Auditorium of the LAPL Central Library for the annual FOCAL Award presentation, this year to Viet Thanh Nguyen (author) and Minnie Phan (illustrator) for their book Simone, a picture book about a young girl and her mother whose home is threatened by wildfire. 

In the tradition of the award, the author and the illustrator were presented with a puppet of the main character of the book. A third identical puppet will go on display in the children's room of the library, joining puppets from previous years. The puppets were created by Jesse Kingsley and Moira MacDonald.  

Jesse Kingsley and the three Simone puppets.

The program was introduced by Marilyn Robertson, FOCAL President. After a presentation by Viet and Minnie about how they came to write and illustrate. the essay contest winners were introduced by Sandy Schuckett. 

Sandy Schuckett, Chair of the Judging Panel for the student essays.

The three students read their excellent essays to the audience. They wrote about how they responded to the book, a favorite part or character, and why they would like to meet the author. Then there was a question and answer session with the audience, hosted by Dewi Reyes, Chair of Social Media. (See first photo.) Then we all enjoyed delicious Vietnamese sweets in the library patio.

I have been a member of FOCAL for many years. In order to be awarded the FOCAL book award, the book must be of the highest literary and artistic quality, and must have California content. I know how hard it is to choose a winner–I served on the committee for four years. This year’s choice is excellent and a fitting book to celebrate.

Note: In the past, the FOCAL award ceremony has been held in the fall. However, beginning with this year, the FOCAL Board has decided to hold the ceremony in the spring, giving teachers and students more time to read the book and for the students to write their essays.

WIGGLY WORMS AND NEWLY HATCHED CHICKS: A Visit with Mrs. Best’s Kindergarten Class

Over the last ten years I have written three books about Jennifer Best and her kindergarten students at Haynes School in Los Angeles, beginning with HATCHING CHICKS IN ROOM 6 which follows the process of incubating eggs and raising chicks after they hatch.

After the chicks grow up, the chickens live in an enclosure at the school.

Every year I visit Mrs. Best's class (now in Room 4) to share my books and learn what the students are doing. My visit this year was timed to be on hatching day for the chicks. When I arrived, I saw three of the chicks hopping around in the incubator. Two eggs had yet to hatch. The children were watching the chicks directly in the incubator, or could see them enlarged on the screen in the front of the room which was projecting the image via YouTube. Technology is amazing!

I began my presentation by asking the children how they knew that chickens are bird. The answer: they have feathers and lay eggs. Then I showed them my ostrich egg and measured their wingspans.

My next books with Mrs. Best were BUTTERFLIES IN ROOM6 and PLANTING A GARDEN IN ROOM 6. The students had just finished raising painted lady butterflies and released them in the school garden. 

We talked about how worms are good for the garden and then I read WIGGLE AND WAGGLE while Mrs. Best acted out the story with my Wiggle and Waggle sock puppets. Then the students each had a chance to see worms up close, hold them, and inspect them with a magnifying glass. Afterward they drew pictures and wrote about what they saw.

Red worms are good for recycling nutrients in the soil..

In the year that I wrote PLANTING A GARDEN IN ROOM 6 the students had a very successful vegetable garden. This year they also planted vegetables in a planter box outside. Unfortunately, hungry bunnies have invaded the school yard and ate all the vegetables except for a very large tomato plant and a pumpkin vine.

Jennifer Best and the giant tomato plant and pumpkin vine.

I had a fun afternoon in Mrs. Best’s classroom and enjoyed seeing all the projects displayed on the classroom walls. Before I left I gave each student a copy of my folding book WHO HAS MORE? WHO HAS FEWER? 

On one side of each page they can count the eggs of seven different kinds of birds. On the other they can count the baby birds just hatched from their eggs—just like the chicks they saw hatch in the incubator in Mrs. Best’s class. The students are lucky to have such a wonderful teacher as Mrs. Best who provides them with so many hands-on science opportunities.

Chick and eggshell inside incubator.

MY ART ON DISPLAY AT THE UCLA EMERITI/RETIREES ARTS AND CRAFTS EXHIBIT

On Tuesday, May 19th, I was one of 23 artists exhibiting at the annual Silvia Winstein UCLA Emeriti/Retirees Arts and Crafts Exhibit at the UCLA University Club in Los Angeles, California. I showed prints of my cut-paper book illustrations. Many thanks to Chair Kay Deeney and all the people who make the event happen. This year's featured artists were Shirley Ho, calligraphist, and Craig Schoenbaum, photographer.

The tradition of the show began many years ago when Sylvia, the young widow of UCLA Chemistry Professor Saul Winstein, had a tea for some friends and displayed several paintings. Artistic emeriti friends and spouses were so enthusiastic that Sylvia organized and supported what has become a very special yearly celebration. 

The event is  jointly presented by the UCLA Emeriti Association, the UCLA Emeriti/Retirees Relations Center, and the UCLA Retirees Association. 

READING WIGGLE AND WAGGLE: “BOOKS AND BAGELS” at Apricot Lane Farms, Moorpark, CA

Signing books at Apricot Lane Farms "Books and Bagels" event.

I spent last Saturday morning at Apricot Lane Farms in Moorpark, California, sharing my books at an event for children and parents called “Books and Bagels”. While seated on blankets on a grassy lawn and munching on breakfast, they listened to me talk about being an author and about my books. 

We were in the midst of a thriving organic farm, so it was fitting for me to share my Room 6 books, HATCHING CHICKS IN ROOM 6, BUTTERFLIES IN ROOM 6 and PLANTING A GARDEN IN ROOM 6 and also WIGGLE AND WAGGLE. At the end of the program I signed copies of WIGGLE AND WAGGLE and PLANTING A GARDEN IN ROOM 6, which were for sale in the Garden Shop.

Note: Directions for making stick puppets, singing the Wiggle and Waggle song, and other wormy activities are downloadable HERE.

I thank Liz Davis, Tours and Events Manager, for inviting me to share my books at Books and Bagels and who coordinated all the details of my visit. It was a pleasure to read my books and I was pleased that so many people bought them afterward. I also thank Kristen Nordstrom, who put on my Wiggle and Waggle sock puppets and acted out the story as I read aloud. She also was a great help handing out materials at the end of the program. (Everyone took home supplies to make their own Wiggle and Waggle stick puppets.) Kristen is a teacher at the school on the Apricot Lane Farms campus. She is also a children’s book author and shared her book Mimic Makers at a previous Books and Bagels program.

Kristen Nordstrom with my Wiggle and Waggle puppets.

The Books and Bagels program is a great way to celebrate books and reading and for families to discover the amazing plants and animals of Apricot Lane Farms. You can go to their website to find out more about it and how to visit.

Entrance to the Garden Area of Apricot Lane Farms

SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL Now Available at the LOS ANGELES PUBLIC LIBRARY

I was delighted to discover that my memoir, SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL: Growing Up in the1950s at North East Neighborhood House, Minneapolis, Minnesota, is now available at the Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL). It is on the shelf in the Social Science/Philosophy Department of the Central Branch (call number 360.61A752.) If you don’t want to go downtown to check out the book, you can put it on hold and have it delivered to your local branch.

Although I grew up in Minnesota, I have lived most of my adult life in California and the LAPL is my home library.  I am pleased that they have approved the book for their collection. It took two plus years! Most of my 170 books for children are already on the shelves. Now, readers who know my children’s books will be able to find out what my life was like as a child.

Los Angeles Public Library

SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL is already on the shelves of the Hennepin County Libraries in Minnesota and many other libraries across the country. You can check to see if it is in a library near where you live.

Celebrate ASIAN AMERICAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER HERITAGE MONTH by reading my book, EASTER ISLAND: Giant Stone Statues Tell of a Rich and Tragic Past

The month of May is national Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month and the perfect time to read my book EASTER ISLAND: Giant Stone Statures Tell of a Rich and Tragic Past. You can look for it in your library or download it to your Kindle. I was inspired to write the book after a visit to Easter Island (also known as Rapa Nui) where I had the opportunity to walk among the giant statues and learn about the people who made them long ago.

Few places in the world are as mysterious or intriguing as Easter Island, a tiny, isolated outcrop of volcanic land that lies in the Polynesian region of the Pacific Ocean. When Europeans first stumbled on the island--landing on Easter Sunday 1722--they found a rocky, treeless coast lined with rows of giant stone statues, and a quiet farming and fishing community. Since then, this remote island has raised many questions. Who were the first inhabitants and where did they come from? How did they live? And why did they create such huge stone structures?

This book explains how the answers to many of these questions have been uncovered by archeologists or found in legends and family histories. In about 400 A.D., a small group of seafarers reached the uninhabited island and established a new settlement incorporating many of the traditions found elsewhere in Polynesia. They developed a rich and complex culture that lasted for more than a thousand years. Today large jets traveling between Santiago, Chile, and Tahiti stop at Easter Island several times a week. Thousands of people come to the island each year to see the ancient giant stone statues and to explore what has been called the world's largest open-air museum. Continued study of this remote island will help us gain a better understanding of its people and their history, as well as the fascinating story behind the giant "living faces" that line its shores.

CELEBRATE EARTH DAY by Watching Young Eagles in the Nest

Bald Eagles, Fraser Point, Santa Cruz Island, CA. 

Today is Earth Day when we celebrate the Earth and the natural world. What better way to get a close look at nature than to watch a family of bald eagles at their nest. I am watching (on my computer) a nest in California on Fraser Point on Santa Cruz Island. A video cam of the nest gives a 24/7 live feed of the activity at the nest--beginning from the time the parents laid their first egg in February and eventually (sometime early this summer) to the day when the young eaglets fledge.

Illustration by Caroline Arnold, A BALD EAGLE'S WORLD

I began watching eagle nest cams on my computer when I was doing research for my book A BALD EAGLE'S WORLD (PictureWindow Books, 2010.) By watching the birds' behavior I learned valuable information for my text and the close-up views were crucial for my art. Now, every year during the spring when eagles are nesting, I tune into the nest cams on my computer and check in to see how the eagles are doing. 

The Fraser Point video cam is just one of a number of eagle nests around the nation that you can watch on your computer. Search for "bald eagle nest cam" to find one near you. 

Watch Jackie and Shadow and their two chicks in their nest at Big Bear in California on YouTube.

Note: Prints of my illustrations for A Bald Eagle's World are available at my Etsy Site.

SAN FRANCISCO EARTHQUAKE 120TH ANNIVERSARY: Time to Read KEEPER OF THE LIGHT

Illustration by Rachell Sumpter for KEEPER OF THE LIGHT.

Today is the 120th anniversary of the deadly 1906 San Francisco earthquake. That morning, across the Bay, on Angel Island, light keeper Juliet Nichols woke up to violent shaking.

I awake with a jolt. Everything is moving!

My bed thrashes like a boat in a storm. Dishes smash. Outside, the lamp swings wildly on its hook. I hang on for dear life and wish I were not so alone.

When the shaking stops. I inspect the house--

Storehouse cracked. Stone basement badly cracked. House plaster cracked.

--Luckily nothing that can't be fixed.

Juliet's story, before and after the earthquake, is the subject of my book KEEPER OF THE LIGHT: Juliet Fish Nichols Fights the San Francisco Fog (Cameron Kids/Abrams, 2022). Beautiful watercolor llustrations are by Rachell Sumpter. Read the book and find out how Juliet saved the day when the fog bell failed during the foggy summer after the earthquake and she had to ring the bell by hand.

The San Francisco Earthquake

At 5:12 a.m., April 18, 1906 a violent earthquake struck the city of San Francisco, toppling buildings, cracking streets and sidewalks, bursting water mains. The rupture extended both northward and southward for a total of 296 miles (476 km). Shaking was felt from Oregon to Los Angeles. No system of measurement was in place at the time, but it is thought today that the earthquake would have measured between 7.9 and 8.2 on the Richter scale.  Hundreds of buildings collapsed during the quake.  But the bigger disaster came from the fires the followed.  Without a water supply, it was difficult to fight the rapidly spreading flames. By the time the fires were out, 500 city blocks were destroyed, at least 700 people were dead, and more than 225,000 homeless.

CENTRAL 100 COLOR-BY-NUMBER READING CHALLENGE : Los Angeles Public Library, Los Angeles, CA

A beautiful coloring page depicting the murals in the library rotunda has been created in celebration of the Los Angeles Central Library's 100th anniversary. You can pick one up at your branch library along with a set of colored pencils. Directions for participating are HERE.  

On the back of the coloring page you will find cool facts about the Rotunda, originally the heart of the library and where the card catalog and service desks were located. There will be three different coloring pages released in 2026. The color-by-numbers art is by Alexander Vidal.

HAPPY EASTER! Making Ukrainian Easter Eggs

Eggs have long been associated with Easter is a symbol of renewed life. I became fascinated with the beautiful designs on Ukrainian Easter eggs (called psanky) when I was growing up in Northeast Minneapolis. I started to make them myself when I was a teenager. I took a bus from our home in South Minneapolis to the Ukrainian Gift Shop on East Hennepin Avenue to buy the tools and special dyes needed to make the designs. Behind the counter a woman dressed in a traditional Ukrainian costume demonstrated the technique, making beautiful intricate designs and using many colors of dyes. To make the eggs the designs are drawn in wax with a stylus (kistka) and the colors are added successively. In the end the wax is removed, revealing the richness of the colors.  The eggs can be kept year after year because the inside moisture simply evaporates over time.  (The designs are made on raw eggs.  The eggs are not meant to be eaten but used for decoration.) Some of the eggs in the bowl above were made by my children when they were much younger, others by me. Getting them out at Eastertime is a well-loved family tradition.

HAPPY EASTER! 

(Note: In 2026, Easter falls on Sunday, April 5th. But in the Orthodox Church, Easter is a week later, on April 12th, because of a different way of calculating the date on the Orthodox calendar. Whichever you celebrate, best wishes for a happy holiday!)

AUTHOR VISIT AT WPC PRESCHOOL

Wiggle and Waggle sock puppets.

Last Friday I made my annual author visit at the WPC Preschool in Los Angeles, sharing my books with four classrooms of children. As always, I read the first two stories of Wiggle and Waggle to each group, inviting the children to join me in singing the Wiggle and Waggle song while one of the teachers performed the actions with my Wiggle and Waggle sock puppets. It is always a popular part of my visit.

Because the children were getting ready for their spring break and many would be dying Easter eggs at home, I also shared Hatching Chicks in Room 6. This gave me the opportunity to talk about how all birds lay eggs and to show them my ostrich egg. They were suitably amazed at how big it was and were thrilled to have the chance to touch the smooth shell is I carried it around the room.

My final book with the oldest group of children (5 year olds) was The Terrible Hodag and the Animal Catchers. Reading that book to them has become a tradition ever since my first visit more than twenty years ago when I ran out of time and the kids insisted I keep reading even though it was their recess time. They wanted to find out what happened at the end!

I thank Director Brianne Naiman and all the teachers at WPC for welcoming me to the school. It is always a pleasure to visit.

ART PRINTS OF MY BOOK ILLUSTRATIONS, Available at My Etsy Site

Penguins Jumping, illustration from A PANDA'S WORLD (PictureWindow Books, 2006.)

Animal prints at my Etsy site are on sale at new lower prices! Suitable for framing. Prints make great gifts or to decorate your the walls of your home, office or classroom. Pandas, penguins, polar bears, a platypus and more! Get them while they last!

These are art quality giclee prints of my cut paper illustrations for my books.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/CarolineArnoldArt

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TIME CAPSULE--100 YEARS AGO IN LOS ANGELES, Exhibit at the Los Angeles Central Library

Copper time capsule boxes, from 1881 on left, 1925 on right, at the Los Angeles Central Library.

In May1925, as the cornerstone for the new Central Los Angeles Library building in downtown Los Angeles was laid, a sealed copper box containing memorable items of the time was encased in a cavity within the stone. Inside was a smaller box, a time capsule from 1881 that had been placed in the State Normal School building that previously stood on the spot. When the library building was completed in the following year, the doors opened to great fanfare.  

Cornerstone Dedication and Time Capsule Placement, May 3, 1925.

Now, one hundred years later, in January 2026, in celebration of the Central Library building’s centennial, the time capsule has been retrieved and opened. It is now on display on the third floor of the library, along with the smaller box found within it—the time capsule from the State Normal School.

Some of the items found in the 1925 time capsule.

Some of the items found in the 1925 time capsule.

On a recent visit to the Central Library I visited the time capsule exhibit. I was surprised by the excellent condition of the materials that had been inside it, ranging from a book of Angeles street maps and the library’s annual report (1925) to newspapers and Christmas cards (1881). The items on exhibit are just a sample of what was contained in the boxes.

The Normal School was a teacher training institution. It moved to another location and eventually became the beginning of UCLA.

Selected contents of the 1881 time capsule.

The contents of the time capsule boxes are a snapshot of life in the growing city of Los Angeles.  For more about the city in the 1920s, click HERE for an article at the library website with numerous photos of life in the city at the time.

BATTLE OF THE BOOKS and LITERACY FAIR, Red Hill Elementary, Tustin, CA

Book display at Red Hill Elementary Battle of the Books and Literacy Fair.

On Monday March 2^nd, Read Across America Day, I was one of seven authors with an exhibit table at the Battle of the Books and Literacy Fair at Red Hill Elementary School in Tustin, California. The Battle of the Books is a nation-wide program celebrating reading. At Red Hill, five teams of three students each had read nine books (three by each student) and then responded to questions in a Jeopardy-like competition. There were two rounds of questions. In the first round, students responded by writing their answers on an erase board. In the second round they raced to ring a buzzer in order to answer the question. Parents and brothers and sisters cheered them on from the audience. Before and after the competition and during the intermission, students and their parents browsed the exhibit tables, purchased books and snacks, and got autographs from the authors on their programs. It was a fun community event, celebrating the joy of reading.

Families watch as students on stage compete in the Battle of the Books.

I thank science teacher Reena Fosse for inviting me and for organizing the event. I also thank school librarian Vinnie Yeung and the volunteer high school students who helped with the set-up. Reena Fosse told me that she started the Battle of the Books when her children were students at Red Hill Elementary. This was the fourth year of Battle of the Books. She told me that it gets bigger and better every year.

REMEMBERING LIGHTKEEPER JULIA FISH NICHOLS during WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH

Juliet Fish Nichols, Angel Island Lighthouse Keeper, 1902-1914.

Since 1987, March has been designated as Women's History Month, a time to celebrate the achievements and contributions of women. What better time to reacquaint yourself with Juliet Fish Nichols, the lightkeeper on Angel Island in San Francisco Bay, who, in the very foggy summer after the disastrous 1906 San Francisco earthquake, kept the fog bell ringing to keep ships safe in the bay.

You can read all about Juliet and her heroic stint in July 1906 when fog bell machine broke and she rang the fog bell by hand for twenty hours straight, hitting the bell with her hammer every fifteen seconds until the fog lifted. The book is available on Amazon in both hardback and as a Kindle e-book.

The fog rolls in to San Francisco Bay. (Illustration by Rachell Sumpter.)

Learn more about Juliet at my website .

And learn about visiting Angel Island State Park, where you can see the giant bell and the platform where the lighthouse once stood, at my travel blog The Intrepid Tourist.

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