| The Mystery of the Golden Ball is Available for Pre-Order.The twins are back. On September 15, 2020, Pen & Quin take on their next mystery. You can be one of the first to read all the action by pre-ordering your copy today! The twins are looking forward to the beginning of the school year and the Friendship Cup international soccer tournament taking place in their hometown of Boston. When new student and Brazilian soccer star Mariana joins the school team, suddenly the twins’ are challenged on and off the field. Then the Golden Ball trophy, awarded to the best soccer player in the world, is stolen and the twins know they have to take the case. They just didn’t expect an international mystery to land in their own backyard. Now Pen & Quin have to choose: help their team win the soccer tournament or help their new friend find the stolen trophy and escape the theives who took it. Soccer, art and technology collide in Pen & Quin’s second international mystery. Available for pre-order from Amazon and Barnes & Noble. |
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Book Cover Reveal Monday!
It’s Book Cover Reveal Monday! Check out this amazing cover for Pen & Quin: International Agents of Intrigue – The Mystery of the Painted Book.
I’m excited to show you the cover for the first book in my middle grade mystery series Pen & Quin: International Agents of Intrigue.
The Mystery of the Painted Book will be released April 30th by Vinspire Publishing. And here’s the amazing cover!
For more news on the book’s release, follow me on social media, subscribe to my author newsletter and check out Vinspire’s full line of books!
Mad About Madeleine Winners and Women’s History Month!
Congratulations to the winners of the A Wrinkle in Time Giveaway! Siobhan won a copy of A Wrinkle in Time with the movie tie-in cover and Christina L. won the movie giftcard! Thanks to everyone who entered. I do hope you’ll take the time to see the movie or read the book. Stay tuned as I hope to do more giveaways as my own books near publication!
This is Women’s History Month and to celebrate, I’ve been doing a little reading on some amazing women. I just finished Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly. You might remember this from the movie that released in 2016. It’s an amazing read about the black, female “computers” that literally helped propel NASA into the space age. These women were on the edge of the space race while confronting gender and racial discrimination throughout their lives and careers.
I’m in the middle of Becoming Madeleine, the biography on Madeleine L’Engle written by granddaughters Charlotte Jones Voiklis and Lena Roy. I’m really enjoying the glimpse into Madeleine’s childhood and how her varied school experiences shaped her as a writer. I especially love the snippets of journal entries written by a young Madeleine that reveal how desperately she wanted to be a famous writer, while also wanting to fit in at school like any other awkward teenager.
I’m hoping to finish out the month with Gift from the Sea. Anne Morrow Lindbergh, a writer, aviator and the wife of Charles Lindbergh, wrote this little gem in 1955 but her words speak across the years to new generations of women on writing, love, marriage, children and anything in between.
What are you reading this month? How are you celebrating amazing women, both those from history and those around you every day?
Mad about Madeleine Month: A Wrinkle in Time Giveaway!
February is drawing to a close, and that means spring is almost here, but more importantly, so is the release of the new A Wrinkle in Time movie! The movie opens nation wide on March 9th, 2018!
Not excited yet? Check out the trailer and you will be!
Director Ava DuVernay’s portrayal of L’Engle’s classic story has many people, including me, pretty hyped up. The cast includes Oprah, Reese Witherspoon, Mindy Kaling and Chris Pine, plus Storm Reid as Meg Murry. The movie looks to be an amazing blend of L’Engle’s original story with the creativity and diversity of DuVernay’s long held vision to bring this movie to life.
To celebrate the movie’s release, I’m having a GIVEAWAY. Whoo-hoo. Enter to win one of two prizes. (Yes, two winners!)
Prize 1 – A Wrinkle in Time book – movie edition. The original book with the updated 2018 movie cover. You can read it before you see the movie, or see the movie and then enjoy the story. Either way, you’ll want to hang on to your copy!
Prize 2 – A $15 Fandango movie gift card you can use to purchase your ticket to see the movie! Plus, Fandango is running a sweet deal to nab a free Be A Warrior movie poster when you buy your ticket. So your entry could lead to two cool prizes!
*The Rules*
You must be a resident of the U.S. and 18 or older to enter. Winners will be chosen randomly at the end of the giveaway.
The Mad about Madeleine Wrinkle in Time Giveaway begins March 1, 2018 and ends March 8, 2018. Winners will be notified through information collected by Rafflecopter. I will also post the two winners on my blog on March 8th.
Good luck and please enter below! Thanks for celebrating Mad about Madeleine Month with me!
Summer Reading 2017!
Reading has always been one of the joys of summer. As a kid, I relished the long days of swimming and reading, two of my favorite things. My reading time is shorter these days as I chase around an increasingly mobile kiddo of my own, but I still make time to do some summer reading. Here’s what’s on my list for the rest of the summer.
I just finished Madeleine L’Engle’s first book in the Crosswicks Journal series, A Circle of Quiet. The four books in this series were written mostly from her journal entries she kept while living at her farmhouse in Connecticut and apartment in New York. They cover the time period in her life I now find myself in, raising young children, trying to write and publish, and running headlong into the challenges and joys of both. I’ll probably pick up the other three journals throughout the rest of 2017. L’Engle always inspires and comforts me at the same time.
Next up is the middle grade adventure The Mysterious Benedict Society. I’ve read fellow Arkansas author Trenton Lee Stewart’s series before, but this time I’ll do a close read to see how he’s brought his multiple characters to life. One of my current stories juggles multiple characters on a similar adventure. The best way to figure out how to write your story? Learn from those who have already done it.
Then it’s on to a few non-fiction books for a little inspiration. I received Elizabeth Gilbert’s Big Magic for Christmas, along with Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Who Helped Win the Space Race by Margot Lee Shetterly. I’m hoping one will inspire me to write and the other to dream big. You decide which is which! I just ordered Anne Morrow Lindbergh’s (yes, that Lindbergh) 50th anniversary edition of Gift from the Sea on the recommendation from my cousin that every woman should read this book. I’m sure it won’t disappoint!
Finally, I hope to get to a few books that have been on my list for awhile. Ta-nehisi Coates’ book Between the World and Me as well as Kwame Alexander’s Newbery winner The Crossover (basketball playing twins, yes!) and the follow up, Booked (this one’s about soccer. Woot!) Hopefully I’ll close the summer with Sherman Alexie’s new memoir You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me.
I’ll be happy if I get halfway through this list and continue reading on it in the fall. What’s on your summer reading list?
It’s National Library Week!
Some of my earliest memories involve biweekly trips to the library in Sapulpa, Oklahoma. I loved walking inside this older, red brick building where the smell of books greeted you, along with the librarians.
There’s nothing like that booksy smell? Am I right, fellow library lovers?
Some of my earliest memories involve biweekly trips to the library in Sapulpa, Oklahoma. I loved walking inside this older, red brick building where the smell of books greeted you, along with the librarians.
There’s nothing like that booksy smell? Am I right, fellow library lovers?
My sisters and I would rush to the kids’ section to choose our 4-5 books for that trip. I always wanted to know what my twin pulled off the shelf because I knew I’d be reading her books once I finished my own. I always perused the Newbery Honor books first, then the regular shelves. I loved the way the afternoon sunlight spilled into the large windows and sent golden specks of dust motes dancing through the air. It added to the magical feel of the library.
These days are busy ones for me as I pursue writing my own books, raising a daughter and helping with the farm, but I married someone who loves books just as much as I do, if not more (don’t ask to borrow his books and not return them in pristine condition), and we try to get to the library often. My daughter has already joined us on these trips. Mostly she loves to watch other children race around and look at books right now, but I know soon she’ll be interested in wandering through the shelves and pulling out books on her own.
Isn’t that a wonderful legacy? And it wouldn’t be possible without our libraries. So celebrate National Library Week this week. Visit a library, donate books, volunteer, or simply check a book out with a young person and pass on that love of reading.
Here’s My Book List – What’s Yours?
In August I took a sailing cruise on a refurbished fishing schooner in Maine. Hannah, one of the crew members and a fellow aspiring author, took the time to ask me who my favorite authors and books are. We traded names of books for awhile, getting excited when we hit on one we both liked. I told her I needed to make a list. Here it is, September, and I’m just getting to it. Actually, my timing is perfect.
September is literacy month. Here are some quick facts about literacy before we get to the list (source: Reading is Fundamental, www.rif.org)
Thirty-three percent of 4th grade public school students are at or below the “Basic” level on the 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reading tests.
Fifty-three percent of 4th graders report that they read for fun on their own “Almost Every Day.” Among 8th graders, only 20 percent report reading for fun on their own “Almost Every Day” (NCES, 2009).
Fourth graders who reported having 25 books or more at home had higher scores on reading tests than children who reported they didn’t have that many books.
Forty-three percent of adults read at or below the “Basic” level. This accounts for roughly 93 million individuals.
In Northwest Arkansas, where I live, the National Center for Education Statistics estimated that 13% of the adult population of Washington County was lacking in basic prose literacy skills. They found 12% of the population similarly affected in Benton County, 14% in Sebastian County and 15% in Madison County (2003) .
I started reading in pre-school after memorizing the words to my favorite picture book. My parents read to me and my sisters nearly every night for years. I also grew up on Reading Rainbow and looked forward to seeing what LeVar Burton would recommend next.
It’s hard to imagine something I take for granted and that brings me so much joy is a struggle for many. The ability to read matters, and so does encouraging others to pursue reading, no matter what age or reading level.
So here’s my book list. These are the books I’ve read over and over, that I’ve loved since childhood or discovered as an adult. Many are children’s books. There’s a reason I write for kids. I’ve found many through the recommendations of others. This is by no means a complete list.
Picture Books and Read Alouds
The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats
Owl Moon – Jane Yolen
The Berenstain Bears – Stan and Jan Berenstain
The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses – Paul Goble
Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale – Mo Willems
Where the Sidewalk Ends – Shel Silverstein
Middle Grade and Young Adult
Little House on the Prairie – Laura Ingalls Wilder
Anne of Green Gables – L.M. Montgomery
The Giver – Lois Lowry
The Bronze Bow – Elizabeth George Speare
Harry Potter Series – J.K. Rowling
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever – Barbara Robinson
The Dark is Rising Series – Susan Cooper
A Wrinkle in Time – Madeleine L’Engle
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian – Sherman Alexie
Habibi – Naomi Shihab Nye
The Golden Compass – Phillip Pullman
Chronicles of Narnia – C.S. Lewis
The Watsons Go to Birmingham 1963 – Christopher Paul Curtis
Brown Girl Dreaming – Jacqueline Woodson
Kira Kira – Cynthia Kadohata
Persepolis – Marjane Satrapi
Adult books
In the Time of the Butterflies – Julia Alvarez
Baby of the Family- Tina McElroy Ansa
The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam – Omar Khayyam
A Year in Provence – Peter Mayle
Motherless Brooklyn – Jonathan Letham
The Lord of the Rings – J.R.R. Tolkien
Authors I love
Beverly Cleary
Madeleine L’Engle
Elizabeth George Speare
Julia Alvarez
Katherine Paterson
That’s my list. As a personal challenge this year, I’m trying to read more diverse authors. What’s on your list?
If you’re in Northwest Arkansas and you want more information on helping others learn to read, check out these great organizations.
Literacy Council of Benton County: http://www.goliteracy.org
Ozark Literacy Council: http://ozarkliteracy.org
Northwest Arkansas Reading Council: http://www.nwareading.org
If you’re outside the area, look for a literacy council in your town. You can also contact your local library and ask about ways to volunteer.
Also, check out ReadingRainbow.com to see how Levar Burton is helping a new generation of kids learn to love reading.
For more posts on literacy in Northwest Arkansas, follow #NWarkCares on social media.
Thankfulness – Diversity
I knew I wanted to end my November thankfulness series by spotlighting diverse authors. I didn’t realize how appropriate that would be.
Last week Jacqueline Woodson won the National Book Award for Brown Girl Dreaming. When I finished Brown Girl Dreaming in October, I knew it was one of the best books I’ve read in years. Jackie’s skilled telling of her childhood combined with the racial tension and events occurring in the 1960s and 70s brought an even clearer picture of the struggle she and many others have faced.
Immediately after accepting her award, the emcee of the event, a fellow children’s author, made an inappropriate, racist remark thinly veiled as an attempt at humor. It sadly revealed that the very things Jackie wrote about in Brown Girl Dreaming are alive in America today.
A heartfelt, public apology was made and backed up by raising over $100,000 for the #weneeddiversebooks campaign. Although that’s a wonderful outcome, it doesn’t erase the initial remark or the hurt and humiliation it must have caused.
Last night a grand jury in Ferguson failed to indict a police officer for killing an unarmed black teenager. I’m not making a legal judgment on a case where I don’t have all the facts (does anyone?), but I am shocked by the lack of empathy I’ve seen and heard today as I interact on social media, read opinions and talk with others.
My mind goes back to Jackie’s book, to her struggles as a child, and the realization that the struggles continue for so many in our country while others remain blind to what’s happening. This is exactly why we need books like Brown Girl Dreaming.
So today, with a heavy heart for those who are facing situations like we’ve seen in Ferguson, for those living in a world where hardships and challenges are more common than privileges, a world where we must have a #weneeddiversebooks campaign to increase the diversity of our writing, I’m thankful for writers like Jacqueline Woodson, An Na, Sherman Alexie, Pam Muñoz Ryan, Julia Alvarez, Tina McElroy Ansa, Sandra Cisneros, Marjane Satrapi and so many more – writers who are writing about their diversity, their experiences, their stories for the next generation.
Your stories matter. Your words matter. Your lives matter.
And we need them.
Thank you.
Thankfulness – C.S. Lewis
In this month of thankfulness, the second author I’m thankful for is C.S. Lewis. It seems like I was always rereading one of the Chronicles of Narnia as a child.
Lewis’ seven book series about the world entered through the wardrobe, the painting, the magic rings and other ways fascinated me. What child doesn’t want to discover a secret world where animals can talk and children can meet Santa Claus and fight in battles?
I loved that you never knew how or when an adventure to Narnia might begin. It could happen at any time, so you had to be expectant, watchful, ever dreaming of the next adventure. I found that true in my life as a child, and just as true as an adult. You don’t know when the next adventure is beginning. It could be just around the corner.
I’m not sure when I first made the connection between Aslan and Jesus. It probably wasn’t the first reading, and maybe not the second, but somewhere in those many readings, I realized Lewis was drawing a parallel between Aslan’s decision to let the White Witch kill him and the crucifixion of Jesus. I began to search for other parallels in the writing, and the books took on a new thrill as the deeper meanings of Lewis’ stories began to unfold before me.
There’s something magical and inviting about the world Lewis created that strengthened 
my faith in this world. I like to think that parts of his stories are in some ways true, if not here, then in a world I haven’t discovered yet, that world where talking animals do exist and I will get to meet Father Christmas face to face. That world where Aslan is king, both as the lion Lewis created and the man he personified.
“Africa Lion” Image courtesy of tiverylucky at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
“Lantern on Snow” Image courtesy of papaija2008 at FreeDigitalPhotos.net