As if I needed any more evidence of authors’ support for each other, I had the pleasure of reading some Twitter posts with pictures of Laurie Halse Anderson listening intently from the balcony as Jason Reynolds addressed an audience at this year’s Nerd Camp in Michigan! In our society these days, we see such a […]
September
14
Building Each Other Up Makes the World (and our Reading and Writing) so Much Better by Theodora (Lolly) Salazar
posted by CBethM
September
12
Get on the Bus! by Lucretia Brattin
posted by CBethM
The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise by Dan Gemeinhart caught my attention when I saw the cover. My sister and I have a desire to turn a school bus into an RV after we retire from teaching. We think we will travel around the country and have lots of adventures. I’m always on the lookout […]
September
10
The Making of Dasher by Matt Tavares
posted by CBethM
My new book Dasher comes out today! To celebrate its release, I thought I’d share a little behind-the-scenes look at some of the work that went into making the book. Every picture begins with a sketch. For this book, I did all the sketches digitally, mostly because at this part of the process I like […]
September
09
A Reading Life Is Not Linear by Clare Landrigan
posted by CBethM
“Thank you … I have been thinking about what you said”. I turn to locate the voice and wonder, “Is he talking to me?” Our eyes meet. “You came to my class last week. You told us that reading wasn’t always easy for you. No teacher ever says that. I have been […]
September
07
How the Book Julian’s A Mermaid Finally Changed My Thinking by Deana Metzke
posted by CBethM
Let me start by saying that I have read and understand the issues connected with the book Julian is a Mermaid. This piece is not written in support or non-support of the book, but rather an explanation of how the topic of the book affected my growth and the thinking of those around me. Julian […]
September
06
Failure If You Let It: A Tale of Extreme Revision by Laurel Snyder
posted by CBethM
This week, My Jasper June is finding its way into the hands of young readers for the first time. This makes me unbelievably happy for a lot of reasons. But among those reasons is a terrible truth—the fact that My Jasper June was a total and complete failure. An absolute disaster. Not THIS book, the book with the beautiful green […]
September
05
Fantasy in Foster Care: Facing Impossible Storms by Lindsay Lackey
posted by CBethM
My debut middle grade novel, All the Impossible Things, is about eleven-year-old Red, who has been in foster care for three years, and who accidentally causes tornadoes when she’s upset. The heart of Red’s story is based firmly in reality. My youngest cousin was fostered and then adopted by my aunt and uncle nearly […]
September
03
A Silver Lining: How Being Deaf Informs My Work by Cece Bell
posted by CBethM
When I was a kid, I was too anxious to ask the librarian at our local library for a library card. I dreaded those kinds of interactions, the ones that meant I would have to lip-read an adult I didn’t know and maybe make an embarrassing mistake. So I would walk the four blocks to […]
September
03
Thank You, Sister Cabrini by Matt Forbeck
posted by CBethM
I went to Catholic school as a kid, and my grade school was run by the Brigidine Sisters, an order of nuns brought over from Ireland to my hometown in southern Wisconsin, by way of Texas. As a smart kid, I was often bored at Our Lady of the Assumption Grade School, and my idleness […]
September
02
If You Really Want to Change the World, Read a Book by Morgan Jackson
posted by CBethM
I can’t know everything about everyone, everywhere. No one can. I’ll never forget reading Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings for the first time with a group of high school juniors. I had a class of 21 students with just 4 girls and 11 of the 17 boys played varsity football. We […]
