JUNE ISSUE
Our June line-up includes interviews with Dan Gutman, Cherry Mo, Scott and Mark Hoying, Jenn Reese, Josh Lewis, Allie Millington, Sally J. Pla, and Alan Katz! Conrad Storad offers a glimpse of the prehistoric, Judy Newman is going up to bat, and Nick Spake reviews Janet Planet.
And be sure to check out our newest book reviews and summer reading list. It's all inside!
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FEATURES
Dan Gutman
Is Up to More Weird School Shenanigans
by Raven Howell
Bestselling author Dan Gutman has written 185 books for young readers, including the My Weird School series, the Baseball Card Adventure series, and the Genius Files. The School Library Journal distinguished him “an expert at merging humor with history.” Dan’s work covers a wide variety of themes such as sports and science.
By the end of this year, his My Weird School book series (published by HarperCollins) will include over 100 titles, with more than 35 million copies sold globally. And this June marks the series’ 20th anniversary.
As a prolific author, one would think he writes like mad, dawn to dusk, daily. On the contrary, he says. “Never. I have author friends who will spend the whole day writing or write all night. Not me. As the only employee of a small business, I have lots of other stuff besides writing that I need to do.” Some of that “other stuff” includes promotion, answering emails, research, and billing. Some days may also include KitKats, ice cream, “or milk chocolate anything, really” ... his guilty pleasures.
When he’s working on a book, Dan prefers a quiet atmosphere. “I usually wake up around 7 a.m. I’m a morning person, and that’s when I do my writing. I can only focus my attention for a few hours a day. By lunchtime, my brain is kind of shot. But I write pretty fast. It takes about a month to write a My Weird School book.”
Lunch with Debut Author
Cherry Mo
by Raven Howell
Inspired from childhood events, children’s author and illustrator, Cherry Mo, found herself on a journey of self-awareness. That resulted in her writing and illustrating Home in a Lunchbox, a debut picture book loosely based on her Chinese American background and experiences of immigration. She’s excited to share her story with children who are having similar experiences.
It was a long journey for Cherry. “This book took at least two years to complete, from signing the book deal until publication. However, if we include the years it took to put together a presentable book dummy and to find my wonderful agent, Emily van Beek, it has been about three years in the making. If we count the number of years this story has been brewing inside me, it’s been about 20 years in the making!” she says.
Home in a Lunchbox follows Jun, a young girl who has immigrated to the United States from Hong Kong and doesn’t yet speak English. Jun struggles to fit in at her American school. Connections with her classmates seem hopeless until eventually the ethnic foods packed in her lunchbox from home bring about friendship and comradery.
Cherry says, “I am basically Jun! I was a shy and timid girl, and moving to the United States was quite daunting for me at the time. Throughout the process of working on Home in a Lunchbox, I recognized that oftentimes, this ‘Jun’ that withdraws from the world is still there inside me. Interestingly, as I continued to work on the story, I also found myself opening up. It was as if I was discovering and overcoming this part of myself alongside Jun.”
Scott and Mark Hoying
Celebrate Life’s Joys in New Picture Book
by Raven Howell
Who would have imagined a charming new debut picture book would be inspired by the mayfly’s short lifespan? With lively illustrations, How Lucky Am I? fosters life appreciation, living in the moment, and essentially, love. “I always dreamed of writing and publishing a children’s book, ever since I was a kid. I loved all types of stories and fables growing up, and I’ve always been a big fan of picture books and animated films!” says co-author Mark Hoying.
Mark, a writer from Seattle, Washington, and book partner husband Scott Hoying are both enthused and proud of their new release. “It offers an adorable, magical love story for kids. It offers the unique fascinating concept of living a full life in just 24 hours. It provides much needed LGBTQ+ representation in the kids’ picture book space that we don’t see very often. It also teaches the lesson of living life to the fullest, practicing gratitude, and cherishing the relationships that doing those things can attract to your life.”
Scott Hoying is the Grammy and Emmy award-winning singer, songwriter, and arranger from the famous multiplatinum-selling a cappella group, Pentatonix. It was around the time he and Mark started planning for their own children that How Lucky Am I? was hatched. “All of the sudden, I was ruminating on parenting, teaching, and instilling values in my future kids. This new realization mixed with the fact that I’m always looking for new mediums to storytell, a children’s book felt so perfect.”
“Something I love about the book is how in the back, it gives scientific facts about queer couples in the animal kingdom. Whether it’s mayflies, penguins, or cheetahs, queerness exists, and their stories deserve to be told.”
photo by Stephen Finnegan
Jenn Reese
Gives Middle Graders the Ultimate Twisty Mystery Adventure
by Raven Howell
Get ready to solve the mystery at the heart of this captivating new middle grade adventure about family—and a house with a mind of its own—from the award-winning author Jenn Reese.
Twelve-year-old Perigee has never met a problem they couldn’t solve. So when their Dad’s spirits need raising, Perigee formulates the Plan: a road trip to Dad’s childhood home to reunite him with his estranged mother. There’s something in it for Perigee, too, as they will finally get to visit “Eklunds’ Puzzle House,” the mysterious bed & breakfast their grandparents built but never opened.
They arrive ahead of a massive storm and the House immediately puts Perigee’s logical, science-loving mind to the test. Corridors shift. Strange paintings lurk in the shadows. Encoded messages abound. Despite Perigee’s best efforts, neither the House nor Grandma will give up their secrets. And worse, prickly Grandma has outlawed games and riddles of any kind.
Even the greatest of plans can crumble, and as new arguments fill the air, the House becomes truly dangerous. Deadly puzzles pop up at every turn, knives spin in the hallways, and staircases disappear. The answer lies at the heart of the House, but in order to find it, Perigee and their new friend Lily will need to solve a long-lost, decades-old riddle … if the House itself doesn’t stop them first….
Josh Lewis
Takes Little Readers on a Journey Out of This World
When Ray launches from the sun into outer space, she knows she’s destined for adventure. But who knew everything in space was so far apart?! Can Ray unlock her creativity to pass the time and make something new?
With a lovable protagonist and engaging comic illustrations, Ray’s Big Day tackles the vastness of space through one ray of light’s optimistic exploration. Ray’s journey makes basic information about the solar system, the universe, and the speed of light accessible and engaging for kids. Fun and educational backmatter illustrates how far and fast light travels through our solar system.
Tell us a bit about your background/life growing up.
My dad joined the Army when I was 6 months old, so we moved around a lot. I was born in Eugene, OR, but I didn’t live there for very long. By the age of 17, I had lived in 12 cities throughout the U.S. and Germany. It gave me an excellent perspective on being a global citizen. As long as I can remember, I have loved drawing. I was also captivated by old cartoons and science. My class would watch space launches on old TVs rolled in on a cart. At the library, I checked out all of the space and science books I could. In the late ’80s, we got the first images of Uranus and Neptune from the Voyager II space mission. I ate it all up! In high school, the first serious career I considered was being a chemist. At the same time, I rediscovered my passion for art and started developing my skills in graphic design. So I found a great career that combines my love of science with my artistic abilities.
Allie Millington
Types an Unforgettable Middle Grade Story
by Raven Howell
Allie Millington, author of the USA Today and Indie Bookstore Bestseller book, Olivetti, considers herself “old in soul, yet young in heart.” As a child, the one thing she wanted was “to be sure of myself,” she cracks and then adds, “I’m still working on that. But at the same time, the only thing I was sure of back then was that I wanted to be someone who wrote books that meant something to people. I’m still working on that too.”
While her book fans are certainly hoping she’ll continue writing more stories, Allie’s Olivetti has already reached and surpassed several literary milestones. The tender and touching middle grade mystery about a typewriter (named “Olivetti”) and Olivetti’s family, the Brindles, has not only received starred reviews from Bookpage, Booklist, and Kirkus, but also earned a glowing review in the New York Times from none other than Tom Hanks.
“When I began working on Olivetti, the dream of ever becoming published still felt so far away,” Allie discloses. “I was writing on somewhat wobbly legs after spending a few years pitching multiple books to literary agents and collecting a mound of rejections. After all that time of receiving so many No’s, it was a bit hard to grasp when I was suddenly swept up into a whirlwind of Yes’s with Olivetti. I could have never imagined that a story about an underestimated typewriter would take off as it did. I still have a hard time believing it, actually.”
In the story, Olivetti has been forgotten by the Brindle family whom he has lived with for many years. When the typewriter is abandoned at the pawn shop, and then mom, Beatrice Brindle goes missing, Olivetti believes he can help find her. Twelve-year-old Ernest Brindle teams up with Olivetti to find Beatrice, but the journey involves deeper, more critical aspects of finding what they’ve truly been running from … and where they belong. Allie’s formatting of alternating chapters between Ernest and Olivetti’s points of view adds a playful edge to the story’s unmasking of the family’s pain and healing.
Q&A with
Sally J. Pla
by Julianne Black DiBlasi
As a neurodivergent character myself, I was thrilled to hear about the new release Invisible Isabel by Sally J. Pla. My childhood literary heroes certainly weren’t too shabby—Nancy Drew, The Baby-sitter’s Club, and Hobbits galore … but while some protagonists had their quirks, I wouldn’t have noted them far enough outside the box to add the label “divergent.”
Fast-forward to noticing sensory issues in my own daughter’s development. Hiding from getting rain on her face, rocking when tense, and don’t get me started on those hand dryers in public bathrooms. I had to map out every family-friendly bathroom at Disney so we could get through potty training without having one of those damn things go off, echoing its awful roar from floor to ceiling.
Having neurodivergent “enhancements” in my own life allowed me to spot them in her, work through it, and come up with our own ideas and solutions early. But what’s even better, is the fact that she’ll be able to have more and more peer role models in books and film to identify with. It’s one thing when your mom tells you you’re okay, it’s quite another when someone that you actually think is cool confirms it.
Pla’s work creating a database of neurodivergent resources and books is positively inspiring. But it’s Isabel my daughter will admire. An early middle grade story of bravery, resilience, and acceptance, Invisible Isabel is an easy read that everyone can relate to from their own perspective. As a parent, a friend, a sibling, or as someone with Autistic or ADHD issues, all readers will learn a broader understanding of the role they can play to improve communication and consideration.
The Book Bug
Alan Katz
From Silly Dillies to Zooloween
by Raven Howell
“I’ve never had a job that doesn’t involve writing. In fact, I can’t think of a job that doesn’t involve writing,” considers award-winning author, Alan Katz. Alan has written well over 50 books for children including board books, picture books, early readers, middle grade series, trivia sets, and poetry compilations. And that’s just scratching the surface. An incredibly creative and prolific writer, Alan was an XM Kids radio host, and he has created comic books, trading card sets, web videos, TV commercials, and hundreds of other special projects for kids.
Let’s start at the beginning. “I kind of had two first breaks,” he says. “I wrote for stand-up comics when I was in high school. I was paid $7 a joke; I’d send 20 jokes, and the comics would circle the ones they wanted to buy and send me a check for $7, $14, or more.”
“I continued writing jokes for comics, advertising, theme parks, and other projects. Later on, I was writing many of the funny songs that Rosie and her guests sang on a talk show called The Rosie O’Donnell Show. The ability to write those daily song parodies led me to create my first book for kids, Take Me Out of the Bathtub and Other Silly Dilly Songs.”
Alan grew up in Fresh Meadows, Queens, and raised his own children in Connecticut. “I loved reading and writing when I was a kid. I was at the public library several times a week. I was also an avid writer, and I am so glad that my parents saved some of my first writing. My favorite subject was—and still is—writing. I wasn’t the class clown, but you might say I was the class humorist. I wrote for the elementary school newspaper, and still have a copy.”
MONTHLY COLUMNS
-
Monsters at the Movies
Janet Planet
by Nick Spake -
Life of a Reader
Batting Average
by Judy Newman -
Conrad‘s Classroom
A Glimpse of the Prehistoric
by Conrad J. Storad -
Liv On Life
“American Sun”
by Olivia Amiri -
Kids Corner
from Alan Katz
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