Betsy Bird's Blog, page 29

Positive Growth and Positive Mental Health: TikTok Star Tony Weaver Jr. Discusses His Latest Comic for Kids, Weirdo

Seems to me that if you have 794.3K followers on TikTok, that’s a lot of followers. Right? Sounds like a lot to me. And if your name is Tony Weaver Jr., there’s probably a reason for that massive amount.

So I didn’t know much about any of that. I didn’t know that Tony was a TikTok Star and the CEO of Weird Enough Productions and had his own social impact organization. I didn’t know that when he sold his middle grade graphic memoir Weirdo it got a write-up in (checks notes) Forbes. I just kne...

A Q&A with Debbie Ridpath Ohi: I Want to Read All the Books

Today’s post comes to us from a woman that I’ve admired for years. Humor and pictures combine in her books in heretofore unprecedented ways. Now she has a picture book that a lot of us, and I mean a lot of us, can relate to. I Want to Read All the Books is slated for shelves everywhere, nation-wide, today!

Here is the plot:

Hana wants to know everything about the world around her. When she starts asking questions, her mother gives her a book. She learns so much, but now she has even...

Fuse 8 n’ Kate: Fireman Small by Wong Herbert Yee

Kate asked me to bring in a fireman/firefighter/firetruck book for us to discuss today as a possible classic. Now if you had to name a 20+ year old picture book featuring that kind of subject matter, what would you choose? Back in the day I read to my kids a veritable plethora of such titles. I became a veritable connoisseur of these books. And the one that rises to the top when I try to think of the older ones? This little number by Wong Herbert Yee. We talk about where Yee went (where did ...

Cover Reveal and Q&A: The Trouble With Heroes by Kate Messner!

There’s a new Kate Messner?!?

There’s a new Kate Messner!

Fans of the woman’s children’s books rejoice! I have it on very good authority that on the distant date of April 29, 2025, we will have ourselves a beautiful brand new middle grade novel by the name of The Trouble With Heroes.

The plot, you say? Why I’m so glad you asked:

Finn Connelly is nothing like his dad, a star athlete and firefighter hero who always ran toward danger until he died two years ago. Finn���s about to fail...

On Writing Memoir and NOT Autobiography: A Ruth Chan Q&A on Uprooted

When I was at the last American Library Association Annual Conference this past June I had a few goals in mind. One of them was to get my hands on a certain graphic novel that was getting all kinds of attention. Called Uprooted by Ruth Chan, the book falls squarely into the graphic memoir genre that’s been doing so well since the rise of Raina Telgemeier’s Smile. Ruth Chan has always been better known for her work on picture books like How Old Is Mr. Tortoise? or Have You Seen Gordon? Now she’s ...

“Data is plural. Data is many.” A Three-Part Manifesto on Illustrating Data by Pirita Tolvanen

Sometimes the most interesting people reach out to me. Recently, I heard from Pirita Tolvanen, a Finnish Illustrator & Information Designer, who informed me that for the last couple of years she has conducted a research project about data visualization and nonfiction picture books. This originated as an independent project, though she started it as a Fulbright scholar at the Simmons University’s Center for the Study of Children’s Literature in Boston, MA, USA, back in 2022.

As an outcome of t...

“Language is democratic.” A Ten Year Celebration of The Right Word with Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet!

Tenth anniversaries just don’t get enough press, do they? Particularly when they involve smart books, much beloved upon their publication. Take, for example, the book The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet. Now there was a book that won multiple awards, was widely praised, and now is hitting its ten year high. Such a momentous occasion is deserving of praise! Of celebrations! Of . . . of . . . an interview with the creators!

I mean, why not? But just in case y...

Fuse 8 n’ Kate: Duck for President by Doreen Cronin, ill. Betsy Lewin

The election isn’t until November, but we figured it would be a good idea to tackle the season early before everyone starts plugging their ears saying, “La La La! I can’t hear you!” And as luck would have it, today’s particularly political picture book came out 20 years ago this year. Now in previous election years, Duck for President was released every four years. It is not, as far as I can tell, being released in 2024. Why is that? This podcast episode aims to answer that question, as well...

Review of the Day: The Yellow Bus by Loren Long

The Yellow Bus
By Loren Long
Roaring Brook Press (an imprint of Macmillan)
$19.99
ISBN: 9781250903136
Ages 3-6
On shelves now.

Picture books are so weird. They���re one of those odd objects that are simultaneously steeped in nostalgia while at the same time appearing as completely new to their intended audience. Adults mostly want to introduce their kids to the books they themselves remember. And since the average adult probably doesn���t tend to remember more than five or six picture books from ...

Guest Post: Recognizing Our Past, Awakening Our Future by Violet Duncan (Buffalo Dreamer)

If the starred reviews don’t get you then the writing certainly will. I’d been hearing a lot about Violet Duncan (Plains Cree and Taino from Kehewin Cree Nation) and her middle grade novel Buffalo Dreamer. Kirkus, after all, starred it and said it was, “Compelling yet heartbreaking���and essential reading for all young people.” They don’t say that about every book either.

Today, Ms. Duncan visits us with a guest post of her own, which I am more than pleased to run. Enjoy:

���I am so h...