By Cynthia Leitich Smith, Gayleen Rabakukk, Suma Subramaniam, A.J. Eversole and Gail Vannelli for Cynsations
Spotlight Image: Love Makes a Garden Grow by Taeeun Yoo (Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books, 2023).
Author/Illustrator Insights
Cover Reveal for When a Brown Girl Flees by Aamna Qureshi from We Need Diverse Books.
Congratulations to Christina Soontornvat on the publication of Legends of Lotus Island: The Guardian Test, illustrated by Kevin Hong (Scholastic, March 2023). From the promotional copy:
Young Plum is shocked to discover that she’s been accepted to the Guardian Academy on Lotus Island, an elite school where kids learn how to transform into Guardians,
By AJ Eversole
Today on Cynsations I am thrilled to present an interview with former, U.S. Poet Laureate, Joy Harjo. Her latest picture book, Remember (Random House Studio, 2023) released last week. Illustrated by Caldecott Medalist Michaela Goade, Remember, is a poem in picture book form.
Continue Reading Author Interview: Joy Harjo on Poetry & Picture Books »
Writing can often be lonely and isolating. How do authors address this? Some co-author books, others write in public places, and others find a community. One such place is the Writers’ Loft in Hudson, Massachusetts, which offered me a place to meet other writers, build on my craft, and be surrounded by dedicated kid lit folks.
By Cynthia Leitich Smith, Gayleen Rabakukk, Suma Subramaniam, A.J. Eversole and Gail Vannelli for Cynsations
Spotlight Image: Jovita Wore Pants: The Story of a Mexican Freedom Fighter by Aida Salazar, illustrated by Molly Mendoza (Scholastic Press,
Congratulations to illustrator Don Tate and author Sherri Duskey Rinker on the publication of Roto and Roy: To the Rescue! (Little Brown, March 21, 2023).
From the promotional copy: When a flash flood threatens a nearby town, helicopter Roto and pilot Roy soar to the rescue! Quick—a truck needs to be hoisted to safety!
Continue Reading Throwback Thursday: Don Tate’s Journey to Becoming an Artist »
Path to publication stories always intrigue me, especially those that feel very serendipitous. Take, for instance, Ian Falconer‘s Olivia (Atheneum, 2000), a story he originally wrote for his three-year-old niece (also named Olivia) as a Christmas gift in 1996.
“I thought I’d do a little book for her,
By AJ Eversole
Steph Littlebird is an artist, curator, writer, and a registered member of Oregon’s Grand Ronde Confederated Tribes. She has Illustrated covers for You Are Medicine: 13 Moons of Indigenous Wisdom, Ancestral Connection, and Animal Spirit Guidance (Hay House, 2022), The Second Chance of Benjamin Waterfalls (Feiwel &
By Cynthia Leitich Smith, Gayleen Rabakukk, Suma Subramaniam, A.J. Eversole and Gail Vannelli for Cynsations
Spotlight Image: Justice Rising: 12 Amazing Black Women in the Civil Rights Movement by Katheryn Russell-Brown, illustrated by Kim Holt (Viking Books for Young Readers,
By AJ Eversole
Hello there! It’s AJ here to ecstatically introduce the next anthology out from Heartdrum!
Heartdrum, an imprint of HarperCollins Children’s Books, offers a wide range of innovative, unexpected, and heartfelt stories by Native creators, informed and inspired by lived experience, with an emphasis on the present and future of Indian Country and on the strength of young Native heroes.
Continue Reading Announcing Davy June’s Legendary Fry Bread Drive-In Anthology »