By Cynthia Leitich Smith, Gayleen Rabakukk, Stephani Eaton, Suma Subramaniam, Bree Rae, A.J. Eversole, and Gail Vannelli for Cynsations
Thank you to everyone who joined us over the 2021-2022 academic year!
We dearly appreciate the authors, illustrators,
By Bree Rae
Newbery award-winning author and children’s literature icon, Gary Paulsen has passed away. He was 82 years old.
Beloved Author Gary Paulsen has Died Aged 82 via MacMillan. Peek: “It was Paulsen’s overwhelming belief in young people that drove him to write. His desire to tap deeply into the human spirit and encourage readers to observe and care about the world around them brought him both enormous popularity with young people and critical acclaim from the children’s book community.”
Obituary: Gary Paulsen by Shannon Maughan from Publishers Weekly.
By Bree Rae
Award-winning children’s book author Margaret-Olemaun Pokiak-Fenton (Inuvialuit) died on April 21, 2021. She was 85 years old.
Remembering Margaret-Olemaun Pokiak-Fenton, children’s book author and residential school survivor from Quill and Quire. Peek: “Born on Baillie Island in the Arctic Ocean, the author of Fatty Legs: A True Story,
Continue Reading In Memory: Margaret-Olemaun Pokiak-Fenton »
By Bree Rae
Award-winning author and illustrator Lois Ehlert has died at the age of 86.
‘Chicka Chicka Boom Boom’ Illustrator Lois Ehlert Dead at 86 by Hannah Frishberg from the New York Post. Peek: “Before her career in children’s books,
By Bree Rae
Cynsations is excited to welcome Valerie Bolling, author of the picture book Let’s Dance!, illustrated by Maine Diaz (Boyds Mills & Kane, 2020) as well as the forthcoming Together We Ride (Chronicle, 2022) and its sequel Together We Swim (Chronicle, 2023).
Continue Reading Author Interview: Valerie Bolling on the Creative Life & Writing That Moves »
By Bree Rae
Award-winning artist and children’s book illustrator Irving James Toddy died Nov. 25, 2020. He was 69 years old.
Obituary: Irving James Toddy from The Navajo Times. Peek: “Irving was born Feb. 4, 1951, in Ganado, Arizona, into the Bit’ahnii (Folded Arms People Clan), born for Red Streak Across Forehead (Zuni).
By Bree Rae
Today, I am excited to welcome the critically-acclaimed middle grade and young adult author Corey Ann Haydu to Cynsations. Corey Ann is the author of many books for middle grade and young adult readers including her Edgar Award nominated young adult novel Eventown (Katherine Tegen Books, 2019).
Continue Reading Author Interview: Corey Ann Haydu on Finding the Joy in Writing »
By Bree Rae
Award-winning children’s author and illustrator Mitsumasa Anno died Dec. 24, 2020. He was 94.
Obituary: Mitsumasa Anno by Shannon Maughan from Publishers Weekly. Peek: “He grew up in Tsuwano, a small town surrounded by mountains, where his talent for drawing and an aptitude for mathematics began to shine,
2012 South Asia Book Award Winners Announced from PaperTigersBlog. Learn more about Same, Same but Different by Jenny Sue Kostecki-Shaw (Henry Holt, 2011) and Island’s End by Padma Venkatraman (Putnam, 2011).
Author Draws on Her Tween Experiences: A Feature on Jo Whittemore by Joe Gross from The Austin American-Statesman.
