Authors & Illustrators Wild About Kidlit!
These six YA Contemporary Novels all feature adorable covers, snappy titles, clever writing, and charming protagonists. As you’re curled up in your favorite reading chair, make sure you have a box of tissues nearby as these novels overflow with heart!
The spotlight for this post is 5 powerful contemporary novels: Invisible Son, Give Me a Sign, When it All Syncs Up, Ander & Santi Were Here, and True True. All are realistic, compelling, and mind-expanding, the kind of novels that draw you in and don’t let go.
In my eyes, there’s nothing like an exquisitely written piece of children’s nonfiction in its ability to teach things and light a fire in a
A Portuguese Man O’ War is not a jellyfish. “Not only is it not a jellyfish, it’s not even an “it,” but a “they” …
In Perchance to Dream, debut YA author Tamara Belko seamlessly intertwines dual points of view, one in verse and one in prose, to tell a coming-of-age story about loss and second chances.
Does a dystopia set in the near-future and full of action and adventure capture your attention? If so, I strongly recommend you read The STRANDED. Sarah Daniel’s debut novel hooked me with the seventh line on the first page:
Let’s warm up with a True or False Pop Quiz about Story Structure:
Laura: Jacqueline, I’m honored to welcome you back to Writers’ Rumpus to discuss this deeply touching book. After reading it, I can truly say you’ve more than achieved your goal of “honoring the lives lost and the resiliency of a city that rebuilt within a year.” What was your inspiration for creating this heartfelt collection of poems?
Lyn Miller-Lachmann’s YA novel Torch brings 1969 Czechoslovakia to life, a time when the country is living under Soviet tyranny. The novel has won major book awards, most recently, Winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Young Adult Literature.
A friend of mine, who also happens to be a writer, gave me a book called CREATING CHARACTER ARCS, The Masterful Author’s Guide to Uniting Story Structure, Plot, and Character Development, by K.M. Weiland, PenForASword Publishing, 2016. (Thank you Tina Oppici). Tina has been suggesting I read it for over two years. She finally handed me a copy and I’m glad she did.
Jewish American Heritage Month is a time to celebrate Jewish contributions across American society, and there are many to choose from!
Contributors who post on WritersRumpus.com have been honoring Asian American and Pacific Islander authors, illustrators, and cultures since way back in 2014! This openness certainly includes the other categories of diverse books, but the focus this month is on AAPI books.
Shaun Tan was not always an author-illustrator. As a boy, he wanted to be an astronaut. By his teens, his goal was to be a genetic engineer. Since he is of small stature, he was often the target of bullies, but he would disarm them with stories.
An unlikely storyline in dual POVs that only gets wilder and more fun but is completely grounded by interesting, realistic characters you can’t turn away from.
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