Spring Reading
Spring Reading
The cherry blossoms in my neighborhood are in full bloom and spring is here, solet’s take a look at some new middle grade novels! On my blog, Book Q&Aswith Deborah Kalb, I’ve interviewed various middle grade authors, includingMaria Scrivan, Suma Subramaniam, Janet Sumner Johnson, Sylvia Liu, and AllieMillington. Here’s what they had to say…
MariaScrivan’s new novel, Nat a Chance, is the latest in her Nat Enough series. Iasked if her character Nat has changed over the course of the series, and shesaid: “Nat is a lot likeCharlie Brown, except she pulls the football from beneath herself. Nat isgetting more confident and comfortable in her own skin, but she still has roomto grow as life continues to bring new challenges. Although Nat was based on mychildhood self, the character has taken on a life of her own, and has becomeone of my greatest teachers. Each book is a letter and reminder to myself to bemore of who I am, to move through doubt and fear, and to believe in myself.”
Suma Subramaniam is the author of thenew novel V. Malar: Greatest Host of All Time. She said: “The inspiration for this story came from my childhood. WhenI was a child, my parents were committed to making seasonal festivals a familytradition. Pongal is a four-day celebration in South India when crops areharvested in mid-January. It is celebrated every year in many Indian householdsduring the Tamil month called Thai, in honor of the work farmers do. Theharvest festival symbolizes a season of hope and renewal. It marks the end ofthe winter solstice and the beginning of the sun’s six-month journey up toEarth’s Northern Hemisphere.”
Janet Sumner Johnson’s new novel,Fault Lines, is a sequel to her novel The Winterton Deception. I asked her ifshe knew how her new book would end before she started writing or if she’d made alot of changes, and she said, “I suppose the better question is 'whatdidn’t change?' The talent show was always planned to be there. But even withthat, I ended up adjusting several of the talents by the final draft givebetter emphasis to the book's themes. I don’t want to give away the ending forthose who haven’t read, but the basic plot building to the climax never changed(even if specific scenes within that did). Until a book is written, it’s hardto see exactly what’s needed for the plot to work, so revision and changes area big part of the magic that is storytelling.”
Sylvia Liu’s new novel is Near and Deer. Of its inspiration,she said, “My wonderful Scholastic editor Maya Marlette and I develop my animalfriendship stories together. She came up with the premise of a dog befriendingan abandoned fawn and the girl who wants to take care of it, and I filled inthe details of what Sienna is like, her family environment (her family runninga bed and breakfast in central Virginia), and the new friends she makes(including a boy and his forest scientist mom). Sienna’s main trait is her needto stay in control, which stems from some anxiety, and she has to learn to letgo and trust others to help her with Persimmon, the fawn. I created Sienna bythinking about how someone like her would react to the situations I put her in,relying on my experiences, observation, and research.”
Allie Millington is the author of the new novel Once forYes. I asked her about why a building is a character in the book, and she said,“I’ve always been drawn to writing from unique perspectives, especially objectsthat hold memories and meaning for people. I thought having an apartmentbuilding as a narrator would be interesting, not only because they hold meaningfor many people, but they are also full of stories themselves. Though using anon-human narrator certainly has its challenges, I also find it endlesslyenjoyable trying to see the world from a new lens. I think that’s where empathyplays a big part within my writing.”
Happy reading!
--Deborah Kalb
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