Category: Author and Illustrator Spotlight

Big Bear and Little Fish: An Interview with Author Sandra Nickel

Big Bear and Little Fish is a sweet story of unexpected friendship between Bear (who is very big!) and Fish (who is very little!), told in accessible prose that’s just right for beginning readers.

Today on the Lerner blog, author Sandra Nickel joins us to discuss influential books, the emotive illustrations, and who she relates to the most: Bear or Fish! Read on to find the official book trailer, a free discussion guide, and more.

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Be a Bridge: An Interview with Authors Irene Latham and Charles Waters

Inclusivity, respect, and connection: these are the keys to a positive environment and healthy relationships. The brand new picture book Be a Bridge uses upbeat rhyming verse and colorful illustrations of a diverse group of students to help bring young readers together.

Acclaimed authors Irene Latham and Charles Waters use this book to bring key themes from their earlier collaborations (Can I Touch Your Hair? and Dictionary for a Better World) to a young audience. Today they join us on the Lerner blog to reveal their inspiration and experiences working together. Read on to find out more!

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Who Are Lerner Illustrators?

Post from Danielle Carnito, Sr. Art Director, Trade

Who are the illustrators of Lerner?

A talented group, that’s who!

A large part of my job is matching and hiring many different illustrators throughout the year to our book projects. With all of the Lerner Publishing Group imprints combined, we* can work with somewhere in the range of 40-65 different artists—the number varies based on the types of books in the list. Since we have a new & different mix of books in each season, we have great opportunities to collaborate with a wide variety of artists.

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AMAZONA: The Process Behind the Graphic Novel

In Amazona, a graphic novel by author-artist Canizales, Andrea, a young Indigenous Colombian woman, returns to the land she calls home. She hopes to capture evidence of the illegal mining that displaced her family—and one of the area’s guards may be a help or a final obstacle. This story has a social conscience, but it will also strike readers with its stark visual style. Its pages feature textured grays and blacks with occasional bold flares of color, projecting a unique sensibility. Talking to the Lerner Blog, Canizales explained his process for creating such distinctive images and shared some behind-the-scenes art:

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How to Be a Difficult Bitch: Empowering YA Readers

Warning: the following post contains strong language.

Being a powerhouse is a choice, a lifestyle, a code of ethics. It takes work, a thick skin, and perseverance. In How to Be a Difficult Bitch: Claim Your Power, Ditch the Haters, and Feel Good Doing It young adults learn the basics of being a Difficult Bitch, from school to friends to body to life.

Halley Bondy, Mary C. Fernandez, Sharon Lynn Pruitt-Young, and Zara Hanawalt collaborated to encourage readers to be themselves no matter what. Read on to discover the Commandments of the Difficult Bitch and to hear from Mary C. Fernandez on what empowers her everyday.

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