Two award-winning Austin authors have ghostly books publishing this month: Adrianna Cuevas and Cynthia Leitich Smith. We couldn’t resist the opportunity for insight on eerie stories from these authors, so we arranged for them to ask each other questions. First up, Cynthia asks Adrianna questions about The Ghosts of Rancho Espanto (Farrar,
Continue Reading Authors in Conversation: Adrianna Cuevas & Cynthia Leitich Smith on Eerie Books »
Julie Anne Peters, the critically-acclaimed, award-winning author of more than a dozen books for young adults and children died March 21 at the age of 71.
Peters first book, The Stinky Sneakers Contest (Little Brown, 1992), was plucked from the slushpile by Megan Tingley,
Congratulations to Cynthia Leitich Smith on Harvest House, out Tuesday from Candlewick! To date, the book has received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and School Library Connection. From the promotional copy:
Deftly leading readers to the literary crossroads of contemporary realism and haunting mystery, Cynthia Leitich Smith revisits the world of her American Indian Youth Literature Award winner Hearts Unbroken (Candlewick,
As a young adult author and former high school teacher who loves reading lists full of unique voices and identities, I find recent news about banned books heartbreaking.
Back in 1986, I wrote a high school research paper about book censorship, and here we are again. I dived back into this problem as an MFA student at the Vermont College of Fine Arts,
Continue Reading Guest Post: Lyn Hawks on How YA Is Literary: The Search for an Abundant Canon »
I recently read Lyn Miller-Lachmann‘s young adult historical novel, Torch (Carolrhoda Lab, 2022), and am eager for Lyn to share her insights on writing in multiple points of view with Cynsations readers. First, from the promotional copy:
Czechoslovakia, 1969
Seventeen-year-old Pavol has watched his country’s freedoms disappear in the wake of the Soviet Union’s invasion.
Continue Reading Author Interview: Lyn Miller-Lachmann on Multiple Point-of-View & Torch »
The Cynsational Books of 2022 were selected by Cynthia Leitich Smith from nominations by Cynsations Team members.
The selections:
Berry Song by Michaela Goade (Tlingit/Haida) (Little, Brown, 2022) From the promotional copy:
On an island at the edge of a wide, wild sea, a girl and her grandmother gather gifts from the earth.
As we close out 2022, I’m thrilled that we can learn from a few more fantastic young adult debut authors’ experiences. Featured in this article are Charity Alyse, Susan Azim Boyer, Anna Gracia, Elizabeth Kilcoyne, Keely Parrack,
Continue Reading Perspectives from 2022 Debuts, Young Adult Edition, Part 2 »
Today I’m talking with Chaz Hayden, the author of The First Thing About You (Candlewick, 2022). Chaz’s debut young adult novel is a deeply personal novel about a high school student, Harris, who just wants to fit in, find love, and be a “normal” teenager despite having spinal muscular atrophy and being confined to a wheelchair.
We were able to ask several debut young adult authors about their highlights and insights from this past year. Featured in this article are Isaac Blum, Becky Dean, R. D. Stevens, Vanessa Torres, Leslie Vedder, and Rebecca Lowry Warchut.
Continue Reading Perspectives from 2022 Debuts, Young Adult Edition »
Congratulations to April Henry on Two Truths and a Lie (Christy Ottaviano Books, 2022), an Amazon Editor’s Pick for Best YA.
Take a look back at April’s advice on tension, originally published in December 2010 and reposted in March 2014, it remains the most-viewed writing craft post in Cynsations history.