Author Interviews – Page 12

Enly and the Buskin’ Blues: An Interview with Author Jennie Liu

Meet Enly Wu Lewis, aspiring musician. He’s determined to go to band camp, but with his mother working two jobs and saving every penny for his older brother’s college tuition, he’s going to have to earn enough money himself. Enly decides to earn money busking on the streets of Altamont, but a series of misadventures upend his plans.

Author Jennie Liu joins us today to discuss writing Enly and the Buskin’ Blues. Read on to find the free downloadable discussion guide!

Author Interviews

Stars of the Night: An Interview with Author Caren Stelson

On the eve of World War II, the Czech Kindertransport rescued 669 children from Nazi persecution. The new nonfiction picture book Stars of the Night: The Courageous Children of the Czech Kindertransport by Caren Stelson and illustrated by Selina Alko sensitively tells the powerful true story of the children’s journey to safety from their collective perspective.

Read on to learn about author Caren Stelson’s research, creative decisions for the voice of the book, and her special trip to meet Nick Winton, son of Nicholas Winton.

Author Interviews

Finding Family: An Interview with Author Laura Purdie Salas and Illustrator Alexandria Neonakis

In May 2019, researchers on a lake in northern Wisconsin made a strange discovery: a pair of loons seemed to be raising a mallard duckling! Normally loons and mallards are rival species, but somehow these three—two childless parents and an orphaned chick—found each other. Finding Family: The Duckling Raised by Loons, by author Laura Purdie Salas and illustrator Alexandria Neonakis, tells the true story of this unlikely family through intriguing verse and striking illustrations. To learn more about how this heartwarming picture book about animal cooperation came together, read on.

Author Interviews

Timothy Dinoman Saves the Cat: An Interview with Author and Artist Steve Thueson

Timothy Dinoman Saves the Cat is a colorful middle-grade graphic novel which drops a talking dinosaur into an outrageously funny spy adventure. Some suspected supervillains have stolen a satellite! To learn why, Timothy Dinoman will visit a mountain fortress, a giant blimp, and diner with excellent pancakes—and run into a really cute cat along the way.

Today the author and illustrator Steve Thueson joins us to discuss their inspiration for the book, their favorite spy gadget and more! Read on to find some sketches from Steve’s creative process.

Author Interviews

Notes from a Sickbed: An Interview with Author Tessa Brunton

In 2009, Tessa Brunton experienced the first symptoms of myalgic encephalomyelitis (also known as chronic fatigue syndrome). Notes from a Sickbed recalls the next eight years of her life—largely housebound—with honesty, a pointed wit, and a lively visual imagination.

Today Tessa joins us to reveal her inspiration for the book, why she doesn’t shy away from dark humor, her favorite comic collection, and more! And read on to watch a video introduction from our YouTube channel.

Author Interviews

Not Done Yet: An Interview with Author Tameka Fryer Brown and Illustrator Nina Crews

Today is election day and no one believed more in the power of voting than activist and politician Shirley Chisholm. Not Done Yet: Shirley Chisholm’s Fight for Change chronicles Shirley’s journey from teaching to entering politics, eventually becoming the first Black woman ever elected to Congress—and, in 1972, the first woman of any race to seriously run for president. Through poetry and digital illustration, author Tameka Fryer Brown and artist Nina Crews celebrate Chisholm’s determination and her commitment to working for rights for all. Although Chisholm is gone, her legacy lives on, continuing to inspire those who fight for fairness and change.

Today Tameka Fryer Brown and Nina Crews join us to discuss this stunning picture book biography. Read on to find a video from the author and information about how you can go vote!

Author Interviews

Torch: An Interview with Author Lyn Miller-Lachmann

Set in 1969 Prague, Torch explores the devastating impact of a totalitarian regime and the different ways young people carve out futures for themselves against impossible odds. The story is told from the perspective of three characters after 17-year-old Pavol fatally sets himself on fire to protest the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia.

Author Lyn Miller-Lachmann had her work cut out for her when writing this historical fiction. Today she joins us to give us the details. Read on to hear about her research and to download the free educator materials.

Author Interviews

Ice Cycle: An Interview with Author Maria Gianferrari

Pancake ice, floebergs, glaciers, icicles . . . cold temperatures create an astonishing variety of ice forms! Welcome winter with a poetic exploration of ice on land and at sea in Ice Cycle: Poems about the Life of Ice by Maria Gianferrari and Jieting Chen.

Please help us in welcoming author Maria Gianferrari to the Lerner blog to share her adventures and research writing this evocative and atmospheric picture book. Don’t forget to download the free activity guide!

Author Interviews

A Long Way from Home: An Interview with Author Laura Schaefer

There’s a lot to worry about in the current day, and twelve-year-old Abby holds it all in her head. In A Long Way from Home, Abby meets two boys from the future who need her help, so she decides to escape the depressing present by traveling to their time with them. But that’s not as simple as it seems.

Today author Laura Schaefer joins us to reveal her inspiration and how she explored her own style while writing the book. Read on to download the free educator resources!