Native Voices: Author & Illustrator Interview: Carole Lindstrom & Michaela Goade

By Kim Rogers

Today, we’re chatting with Carole Lindstrom (Anishinaabe/Métis) author of We are Water Protectors (Roaring Brook, 2020) and Michaela Goade (Tlingit), who is the book’s illustrator. I met Carole and Michaela at Kweli in New York City in 2018.

Carole is also the author of Girl’s Dance,

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Author Interview: Bethany Hegedus on Crafting Picture Book Biographies With Heart

By Gayleen Rabakukk

Bethany Hegedus is an award-winning writer and a tireless champion of encouraging others to push beyond their fear and obstacles. I’m very excited to share Bethany’s insight on tackling tough subjects and writing from the heart with Cynsations readers!

Her newest book, Rise: From Caged Bird to Poet of the People,

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Guest Post: Susanna Reich & Gary Golio on Social Justice, Music & Picture Book Biographies

Guest Post: Susanna Reich & Gary Golio on Social Justice, Music & Picture Book Biographies

Susanna Reich and Gary Golio, photo by Laura Golio

By Susanna Reich and Gary Golio

From intern Gayleen Rabakukk

The power of music to inspire action is explored in two non-fiction picture books out this month: Stand Up and Sing! Pete Seger, Folk Music and the Path to Justice by Susanna Reich,

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Author Interview: Cynthia Levinson on The Youngest Marcher

Author Interview: Cynthia Levinson on The Youngest Marcher

By Gayleen Rabakukk

Cynthia Levinson‘s most recent book has a direct correlation to one of her previous titles. I talked with her recently about writing her first picture book, social justice and biscuits.

Tell us about the process of transforming We’ve Got A Job into a picture book.

You’re right—The Youngest Marcher: The Story of Audrey Faye Hendricks,

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Guest Post: Tamara Ellis Smith on Another Kind of Hurricane

Guest Post: Tamara Ellis Smith on Another Kind of Hurricane

By Tamara Ellis Smith

Space. Not up, as in the final frontier, but between, as in the distance between you and me.

I’ve been thinking a lot about that kind of space lately, and I’ve been especially curious about what can happen inside of it. What I’ve come to believe is that anything can happen—and everything.

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Video: Linda Sue Park on “Can a Children’s Book Change the World?”

Video: Linda Sue Park on “Can a Children’s Book Change the World?”

“Can books help make readers better human beings?

“[Children’s author] Linda Sue Park talks about how books provide practice at responding to the unfairness in life, and how empathy for a book’s characters can lead to engagement in ways that have significant impact in the real world.

“Linda Sue Park is the author of many books for young readers,

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Guest Post & Giveaway: Lyn Miller-Lachmann on Presenting Contested Histories in Fiction

Guest Post & Giveaway: Lyn Miller-Lachmann on Presenting Contested Histories in Fiction

Dana on Writing from the Marrow

By Lyn Miller-Lachmann

Last spring I interviewed Dana Walrath about her debut YA novel Like Water on Stone (Delacorte, 2014), a story of the Armenian genocide told from the perspective of three child survivors and an eagle that observes all.

The comments that I received on my review of this novel revealed that this is still a contested history,

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