Rajani LaRocca's Blog, page 33

St. Mary School!

Thanks to Anderson’s Bookshop, I traveled to DeKalb, IL to visit fifth and sixth graders at St. Mary School! The students and teachers were absolutely lovely, and had some great insights and questions about writing!

Carmichael’s Kids!

Another writer dream came true for me when I had the opportunity to have an author event at an iconic bookstore in the town where I grew up! Carmichael’s Kids is full of delight for young readers…and I was so thrilled to talk about MIDSUMMER’S MAYHEM there!

St. Agnes School!

I wrapped up my Louisville school visits at lovely St. Agnes School, where I met with some super-enthusiastic students who asked excellent questions!

Returning to Louisville Collegiate School!

I was incredibly fortunate to return to my own wonderful alma mater, Louisville Collegiate School, for a MIDSUMMER’S MAYHEM school visit! This is the school I attended from fourth grade through the end of high school, the school that shaped me. I wouldn’t be who I am without this school, and if I hadn’t been encouraged to pursue a wide variety of interests, I’m not sure I would have become an author. As I said in my inscription in the book that I gave to the Collegiate school library, MIDSUMMER’S MAYHEM wouldn’t exist without my Collegiate education. So many things have changed, but the auditorium is almost the same—the place where I went to assemblies and performed in plays many years ago—and that’s where I presented to a huge group of current students! The kids were just wonderful and had lots of fantastic questions. Afterwards, I met with fifth grade students who asked even more questions. After signing a huge stack of books, I had the privilege of going on a tour of the school…and even got to see my name on some plaques. I absolutely loved my visit to Collegiate, and hope to visit again with all my future books!

School Visit at St. Francis School!

I kicked off the MIDSUMMER’S MAYHEM tour in my hometown of Louisville, KY with a visit to awesome St. Francis School! The students were full of energy and asked some great questions!

Event at Barnes & Noble in Walpole, MA

I was on a fun panel with William Patenaude and Ruth Hansen at Barnes & Noble in Walpole, MA where I was thrilled to find MIDSUMMER’S MAYHEM on the “Staff Picks” shelf!!

nErDCamp NNE 2019!!

I loved attending nErDCamp NNE this year at Freeport High School! I got to connect and discuss important topics in literacy with fellow authors (including Lynda Mullaly Hunt, Kate Narita, and Jarrett Lerner) and educators from across New England (and even Alaska…and Canada!). I’m grateful as always for the incredible organizers who put together such a fantastic event!

MIDSUMMER’S MAYHEM featured in the Nerdy Book Club!

I was delighted to see MIDSUMMER’S MAYHEM mentioned in a Nerdy Book Club Post about “Top Ten Books For Current Foodies and Future Chefs!” The post mentions many books I admire and some that I have now added to my enormous TBR pile!

KidLitTV Interview for Children’s Book Week!

I did an interview with KidLit TV as part of the ongoing CBC Children’s Book Week celebrations! You can watch it here, and see  interviews with more fabulous kidlit creators here.

Panel at Books of Wonder!!

I was honored and utterly thrilled to be on a Great Middle Grade Reads panel at Books of Wonder in downtown NYC with my dear friends and tremendous fellow authors Chris Baron, Jessica Kramer, Josh Levy, and Cory Leonardo! At the packed event, we chatted about our novels, our writing processes, and our thoughts on publishing and friendship. A marvelous time was had by all, and it was a dream come true to be at this incredible bookstore!

Earlier that day, we were treated to a fantastic panel with Susan Adrian, Naomi Milliner, and Nicole Panteleakos on “Challenges and Triumphs.”