KEEPER OF THE LIGHT, Keystone to Reading Book Award, 2023-2024, Intermediate List

I was pleased to discover my book Keeper of the Light: Juliet fish Nichols Fights the San Francisco Fog on the Intermediate List of the Keystone to Reading Book Award, 2023-2024. 

Keeper of the Light: Juliet Fish Nichols Fights the San Francisco Fog by Caroline Arnold and Rachell Sumpter Inspired by the logs of a female light keeper who kept the light shining through the fog following the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, this adventurous story captures an important piece of American history.

Many thanks to the Keystone State Reading Association (KRSA) for helping the children of Pennsylvania learn about Juliet Nichols, the intrepid lighthouse keeper on Angel Island in San Francisco Bay during the early 20^th century. 

The KSRA is a statewide organization of people who are interested in reading instruction, literacy development, and the encouragement of life-long reading habits.

The award list notes authors and illustrators who are from Pennsylvania. I live in California, but I was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, so at some level I am a Pennsylvania author too!

Juliet Fish Nichols

117th ANNIVERSARY OF THE 1906 SAN FRANCISCO EARTHQUAKE

Illustration by Rachell Sumpter for KEEPER OF THE LIGHT.

Today is the 117th anniversary of the deadly 1906 San Francisco earthquake. That morning, across the Bay, on Angel Island, light keeper Juliet Nichols woke up to the 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. 

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.

PROJECT: EARTHQUAKE IN A BOX

Illustration for KEEPER OF THE LIGHT by Rachell Sumpter

Juliet Nichols, the lighthouse keeper on Angel Island in San Francisco Bay from 1902 to 1914, is the subject of my book KEEPER OF THE LIGHT (Cameron Kids/Abrams 2022.)

On April 18, 1906, Juliet was woken by a violent earthquake. She wrote in her log:. Calm. Hazy. Severe earthquake at 5:07 A.M. followed by several lighter shocks.

Earthquakes occur when two parts of the Earth’s crust push against one another. To demonstrate what occurs when this happens, you can make a tiny earthquake in a box. (It is best to do this project outside.)

You will need: a shallow cardboard box, scissors, damp sand.

First, cut the box in half. Then put the box back together by overlapping the cut edges. Fill the box with sand. Pat the sand to make it smooth. Now slowly push the two parts of the box together. 

What happens to the sand? Does it form little hills or valleys? Have you made any tiny earthquakes?

VIRTUAL PANEL: PICTURE BOOKS TO INSPIRE at Books of Wonder, NYC

I was thrilled to participate yesterday in a virtual picture book panel sponsored by Books of Wonder in New York. I loved learning about the other authors new books and about how they get their ideas and their research process. For me, it was a great way to promote my new book KEEPER OF THE LIGHT: Juliet Fish Nichols Fights the San Francisco Fog! Many thanks to Rosalyn at Books of Wonder for chairing the panel.

The other authors on the panel were MONICA BROWN, JOHN PARRA, SUZANNE SLADE and LISA ROBINSON. If you didn't watch the panel live you can download the video for about a month. (Check out the Books of Wonder website for details.) At the same website you can also order autographed copies of the authors' books!

Top, Rosalyn, Books of Wonder; Caroline Arnold, Lisa Robinson. Bottom, Suzanne Slade, John Parra, Monica Brown

 

Here's the information about the panel from the Books of Wonder website:

 

Heartfelt and inspiring stories from award-winning creators!

A good picture book can mean the world to a young reader! These beautiful picture books are perfect for empowering and encouraging your young readers and listeners - both with their gorgeous art and their powerful stories!

Growing An Artist, by award-winning artist JOHN PARRA - whose work is featured on U.S. postage stamps, in museums around the world, and in our very own NYC subway system - is a gentle, empowering story based on his own childhood experiences helping his dad's landscaping business.

Keeper of the Light, by CAROLINE ARNOLD - award-winning author of over 170 books for young readers - is the inspiring story of Juliet Fish Nichols, the lighthouse keeper who kept the light shining through the fog following the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.

Blast Off! How Mary Sherman Morgan Fueled America Into Space, by SUZANNE SLADE - whose STEM books for younger readers are routine winners of science-writing awards - tells the story of Mary Sherman Morgan, the first female rocket scientist.

Pablo Neruda: Poet of the People, by award-winning author MONICA BROWN, is a stunning picture book biography of Pablo Neruda, one of the most beloved poets of all time.

The Sweetest Scoop: Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Revolution, by LISA ROBINSON, author of critically acclaimed nonfiction for younger readers.

These are the perfect books for any young reader's growing bookshelf! Meet CAROLINE ARNOLD, MONICA BROWN, JOHN PARRA, LISA ROBINSON, and SUZANNE SLADE and celebrate their wonderful, inspiring books!

Saturday, May 7th at 1:00pm via Crowdcast

REVIEW IN KIRKUS of KEEPER OF THE LIGHT

KEEPER OF THE LIGHT: Juliet Fish Nichols Fights the San Francisco Fog (Cameron Kids/Abrams, April 12, 2022)

The first review of KEEPER OF THE LIGHT:  Juliet Fish Nichols Fights the San Francisco Fog is in! It is from Kirkus in the March 2nd issue. I am so pleased! It covers all the essential facts and I like that it notes that the lighthouse is not a tower. The book will be officially published on April 12, 2022. 

Here's the review:

On Sept. 1, 1902, Juliet Fish Nichols began keeping a journal.

Newly installed as the lighthouse keeper on Angel Island in San Francisco Bay, she enumerated her many duties, requiring physical strength, steadfastness, determination, and bravery. Every evening, she had to light the oil lamp and keep it shining all night long. On an April morning in 1906, the great San Francisco earthquake damaged the lighthouse, leaving Juliet heartbroken. A few months later, when the bay was saturated with a dangerous, impenetrable fog, the hand-cranked fog bell machine broke down, and Juliet had to manually strike the bell with a mallet every 15 seconds throughout the night to warn ships away from the rocks. Her journal entries, based on historical documents, appear in light, thin handwriting and illuminate her mostly solitary life, wholly dedicated to her important work and punctuated by times of terror and danger as well as occasional trips to the city across the bay for supplies. The story conveys Juliet’s deep appreciation for the beauty of the sea and the island’s landscape. Sumpter’s carefully composed double-page illustrations show the lighthouse, harbor, and city from a variety of perspectives and add detail and dimension to the narration. They show, for example, that the lighthouse was not a tower but a cottage with an attached bell house on a platform high on a cliff. Juliet presents White. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A fascinating introduction to a once-celebrated, now lesser-known light keeper. (additional facts, further reading) (Picture-book biography. 7-9)

 

PRESS RELEASE for KEEPER OF THE LIGHT: Juliet Fish Nichols Fights the San Francisco Fog

I am so excited that KEEPER OF THE LIGHT: Juliet Fish Nichols Fights the San Francisco Fog (Cameron Kids, April 15, 2022) is soon to be available. I am beginning to work with the marketing director at Cameron Books to promote the book. Printed books will not be available until April, but a press release with a peek at the book and the beautiful illustrations by Rachell Sumpter is available now. 

Click HERE to go to my Angel Island web page where you can download the press release.

I have visited Angel Island numerous times. I loved learning about Juliet and her lighthouse and about Angel Island. My book is based on historical records and her log, which I read at the National Archives in Washington, D.C.

Stay tuned for more information about KEEPER OF THE LIGHT!

PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY Announcement of JULIET'S LIGHTHOUSE

The announcement of my book Juliet's Lighthouse, to be published in the spring of 2022 by Cameron Kids, appeared in this week's issue of Publisher's Weekly. I am excited about the book, which was inspired by a trip to Angel Island in San Francisco Bay, where I learned about Juliet Nichols, light keeper on the island at the time of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, and her courageous ringing of the fog bell by hand during two long foggy nights after the mechanism of the bell machine failed. The book will be illustrated by Rachell Sumpter.