Cynthia Leitich Smith's Blog, page 45
May 3, 2021
Author Interview: Deborah Noyes on the Creative Life & A Hopeful Heart
By I am excited to welcome Deborah Noyes to Cynsations to share with our readers her thoughts on the creative life, both about her own work and that which has influenced her.
Welcome, Deborah! Could you tell us about your new release?
A Hopeful Heart (Random House, 2020) is a biography of Louisa May Alcott before her break-out success with Little Women (Roberts Brothers, 1868). My book ends (spoiler) at the moment her iconic one begins.
I read Little Women later in life...
April 30, 2021
Cynsational News
By Cynthia Leitich Smith, Gayleen Rabakukk, Stephani Eaton, Suma Subramaniam, Bree Bender and Gail Vannelli for Cynsations
Spotlight Image: Grandpa Across the Ocean by Hyewon Yum (Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2021).
Author/Illustrator Insights
My Beauty Uniform: Ruth Chan by Joanna Goddard from A Cup of Jo. Peek: “[Writing and illustrating children’s books]…is the best job in the world—it’s hard but amazing. Children’s books are this tangible art form that you connect with other people over,...
April 29, 2021
Native Voice: Brian Young on Writing Healer of the Water Monster
By Kim Rogers
Today, we’re chatting with Navajo author Brian Young. Brian is a film maker and personal trainer. His debut middle grade novel is Healer of the Water Monster (Heartdrum, 2021). From the promotional copy:
“When Nathan goes to visit his grandma, Nali, at her mobile summer home on the Navajo reservation, he knows he’s in for a pretty uneventful summer, with no electricity or cell service. Still, he loves spending time with Nali and with his uncle Jet, though it’s clear when Jet arriv...
April 28, 2021
Guest Post: Tirzah Price on Retelling Jane Austen with Murderous Intent
By Tirzah Price
The biggest question I’ve received from readers when they hear that I’ve written a murder mystery retelling of Pride and Prejudice is why? I don’t know if they ask this because they think that Austen is somehow sacred, or if the mash up seems so incongruous, but I always think, Why not?
Pride and Premeditation, the first in the Jane Austen Murder Mysteries (HarperTeen, 2021), marries two of my favorite genre loves: historical fiction and mysteries. The tone is upbeat and a bit i...
April 27, 2021
Author Interview: Anna-Marie McLemore on Representation & Their Writing Journey
We’re thrilled to welcome Anna-Marie McLemore to Cynsations today.
When you look back on your writing journey, what are the changes that stand out?
I’ve gone from coming from a place of thinking I had to apologize for my identities—especially my intersectional identities like being queer and Latinx—and thinking I had to apologize for including them in my stories, to a place of knowing my communities belong on the page.
Like so many of us, my identity is a work-in-progress—I...
April 26, 2021
Author Interview: Amra Sabic-El-Rayess on Her Memoir The Cat I Never Named: A True Story of Love, War, and Survival
Today we welcome Amra Sabic-El-Rayess to Cynsations. Her acclaimed memoir with Laura L. Sullivan, (Bloomsbury, 2020) was a YALSA finalist for excellence in nonfiction.
Amra’s author biography describes her book as “a timely warning to Americans against othering, radicalization and hate. Amra’s story is a remarkable journey of humanity, resilience and determination to gain education and counter hate even i...
April 23, 2021
Cynsational News
By Cynthia Leitich Smith, Gayleen Rabakukk, Stephani Eaton, Suma Subramaniam, Bree Bender and Gail Vannelli for Cynsations
Spotlight Image: We Dream Medicine Dreams by Lisa Boivin (HighWater Press, 2021).
Author/Illustrator Insights
Elizabeth Acevedo Understands That “People Read Like They Eat” from The New York Times. Peek: “I find ultimate delight when a story is matched by equally riveting language, but people read like they eat: Sometimes we want comfort, sometimes we want to work to crack ...
April 22, 2021
Guest Post: Mark Karlins & Nicole Wong on the Creation of Kiyoshi’s Walk
By Mark Karlins and Nicole Wong
Kiyoshi’s Walk, written by Mark Karlins and illustrated by Nicole Wong (Lee & Low, March 2021) is the story of a Japanese-American boy who wants to learn how to write poetry and of his relationship with his grandfather.
Both of us found great joy in creating this book. Mark was able to explore his love of haiku and his belief that the writing of poetry is a way for children and adults to connect more fully to themselves, the world and each other.
Nicole was abl...
April 21, 2021
Author Interview: Ruth Erica on De boom met de bittere bladeren (The Tree with Bitter Leaves)
Today I’m pleased to introduce Cynsations readers to Ruth Erica, whose young adult novel De boom met de bittere bladeren (The Tree with Bitter Leaves) has been published in Dutch in the Netherlands and Belgium by Lemniscaat. The novel explores the experience of growing up in the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide through the eyes of a teenaged protagonist who was a small child when the events took place.
We talked about what drew her to write this story, and how research, int...
April 20, 2021
Author Interview: Christina Soontornvat: When a Book is Worth the Wait
Christina Soontornvat was recently recognized with two Newbery Honors – for All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys’ Soccer Team (Candlewick, 2020) and A Wish in the Dark (Candlewick, 2020). All Thirteen was also a 2021 Sibert Honor, a finalist for YALSA’s Excellence in Nonfiction, and an Orbis Pictus Honor Book, as well as garnering many other honors and starred reviews.
Today, we’re welcoming her to Cynsations to talk about her newly-released book, The...
