One Saturday afternoon, many, many years ago, my nan bought home a book called ‘The Complete Guide To Asterix’. She picked the book up from Kempston Library thinking it was another narrative adventure in the series of books she knew I loved so much. The book was in fact a detailed text book written by […]
Category Archives: Author Posts
April
02
What Good Does It Do To Break A Child’s Heart? by Jo Knowles
posted by CBethM
The first book that broke my heart was The Velveteen Rabbit, by Margery Williams. In it, a child’s parents take away his beloved stuffed rabbit when he gets ill, for fear it carries disease. I sobbed for that rabbit, suddenly all alone in the world. I sobbed over the unfairness of it all. “When […]
March
31
Why We Need Summer Stories by Gillian McDunn
posted by CBethM
Toward the end of first grade, my son started wearing glasses. Once we got past certain logistical issues, such as: where to store them? (not on the floor!) and when to wear them (not while swimming!)–he loved his new, improved vision. Reading had always been his favorite activity, and with the new glasses he […]
March
29
Strange Birds Cover Reveal by Celia C. Pérez
posted by CBethM
Before there is a story, there are images. A group of Brown and Black girls with fists in the air. Four boys walking along train tracks. Vintage Florida postcards with turquoise beaches and bright oranges hanging from trees. Before there is a story, there are feelings. The overwhelming heat and humidity of a south Florida […]
March
26
The Strange, Wonderful Experience of Being Seen by Elana K. Arnold
posted by CBethM
Dear Nerdy Book Folks, Maybe you will find this hard to believe, but when I first imagine a character, a setting, or a plot, and when I set to work, I don’t think about who will read the book. In fact, I’ve been known to form a tiny tunnel by cupping my hands around my […]
March
21
Spy Runner by Eugene Yelchin
posted by CBethM
Spy Runner is a noir thriller for middle-graders. Chases, crashes, shootouts, and cliffhangers at the end of each chapter will keep even the reluctant readers turning the pages. Unbeknownst to them, they will be learning about Cold War. At that time, certain politicians exploited the communist threat against democracy by dividing American people. Nationalistic […]
March
19
LEARNING HOW LANGUAGE WORKS BY MARA ROCKLIFF
posted by CBethM
When my daughter was eleven, she decided to learn Esperanto. We had watched a video about it called The Universal Language, and in twenty minutes, she was hooked. A cool secret language spoken all around the world by a special few—and yet, easy to learn? Sign her up! I was intrigued by the fact […]
March
14
The Art of Being Uncomfortable And Still Inspiring Hope In YA & Middle Grade Lit by e.E. Charlton-Trujillo
posted by CBethM
It was a few weeks before Thanksgiving in rural south Texas when my parents’ bubble gum pink, wall rotary phone rang. It’s the ringing I remember more than the homework I’d been rushing to finish. It was a vivid, piercing sound I can hear to this day. My cousin had committed suicide. Too much drugs. […]
March
13
It’s All in the Names by Lynda Mullaly Hunt
posted by CBethM
The second I saw him I knew who he was. Through the eyes of my main character, Delsie in Shouting at the Rain, I watched him. He wore black jeans and a black, long-sleeved shirt on a hot July day. And, he stood on the edge of the ocean in the middle of a lightning […]
March
12
Through the Woods: On the Magic Of the Outdoors by Ashley Benham Yazdani
posted by CBethM
As a child growing up in the suburbs north of Manhattan, I had the best of both worlds: a bustling metropolis was a short train ride away, but back home my own tree-filled backyard stretched out into relatively undisturbed forest. The city was an accessible electric dreamscape, but the forests that I was […]
