Night and Dana: An Interview with Author Anya Davidson

Climate change, film, and coming-of-age: the new graphic novel Night and Dana pulls no punches. When special-effects obsessives Dana and Lily begin work on an eco-horror movie, tempers flare. But as everything starts going up in flames, Dana begins to forge her voice as a climate activist.

Author and artist Anya Davidson joins us today on the Lerner blog to discuss her process, Boca Boca, and her hopes for young readers. Keep reading to see some in progress sketches!

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Weed: An Interview with Author Caitlin Donohue

Weed: Cannabis Culture in the Americas is a wide-reaching and inclusive collection of interviews which will satisfy young adult readers curious in the unique plant’s history and future.

Culture writer and journalist Caitlin Donohue joins us today to discuss why a book like this is so important and what she hopes young readers will find in the text.

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The Weight of Everything: An Interview with Author Marcia Argueta Mickelson

The new YA novel The Weight of Everything strikes the perfect balance between grief, romance, and self-exploration through the eyes of one girl’s personal experience. Six months ago, Sarah’s beloved mother died in a car accident. Her dad fell apart, and Sarah had to leave her fine arts boarding school to take care of him and her little brother. She’s sure she doesn’t have the time or emotional energy for a relationship with her sweet, handsome classmate, David Garza. But when a school project leads her to delve into her mother’s Mexican and Guatemalan roots and rediscover her love of art, her perspective shifts.

Today award-winning author Marcia Argueta Mickelson joins us to discuss how she relates to Sarah’s story, her inspiration, and her creative process. Read on to download two free educator resources!

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A Hot Mess: An Interview with Author Jeff Fleischer

Over the next several years, the world can expect to see some drastic changes thanks to the climate crisis. A Hot Mess: How the Climate Crisis Is Changing Our World by journalist Jeff Fleischer takes an informed, approachable look at how our world will likely change as a result of our actions, including suggestions on what we can still do to slow down these unprecedented effects.

November 15th is National Recycling Day and to prepare for this holiday we’ve invited Jeff Fleischer to answer a few questions. Read on to discover Jeff’s research process, the most impactful moments of the writing process, and his hopes for young readers.

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Read Woke ™ Books Launches with the Issues in Action Series

By Megan Ciskowski, Associate Publicist

In 2017 Cicely Lewis began developing a program called Read Woke that encouraged readers to explore books written by diverse voices and with diverse characters. Since that time the program has taken off and found great success with librarians across the United States. In 2020 Lewis won School Library Journal’s School Librarian of the Year for her ingenuity and resourcefulness.

This fall Lewis and Lerner Publishing Group partner up to create Read Woke Books™, a collection that seeks to challenge social norms, give voice to the silenced, provide information about groups that have been disenfranchised, disrupt the status quo, and share perspectives from underrepresented or oppressed groups. The first series, Issues in Action, is written by Cicely Lewis and Elliott Smith, an experienced freelance author in the Washington D.C. area. Read on to find series information, author interviews and more!

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