This isn’t a typical blog entry for me. It’s about the personal, not the professional, and there’s nary a word about a book. But, I wrote this because writing helps me grapple with thoughts and feelings that swirl around and … Continue reading
My kids’ public prek-6 elementary school has done a book swap for several years. I am not a main organizer, but I volunteered on one of the book swap days this year, and I was delighted to see the impact … Continue reading
One of my favorite picture books from 2016, A Family Is a Family, Is a Family (Groundwood) by Sara O’Leary and illustrated by Qin Leng, does a beautiful job of making the introduction of diverse family constellations the heart of … Continue reading
My picture book Real Sisters Pretend (Tilbury House Publishers 2016) was inspired by a conversation I overheard two of my daughters having about adoption after a stranger questioned whether they were “real sisters.” My daughters, pictured here with their … Continue reading
Here is my newest essay on Embrace Race, “Living with This” in which I write: “I teach at Simmons College, and one of my graduate students wrote to me saying, ‘I am finding that connection and community are all that’s giving … Continue reading
I’ve led thousands of storytimes over the course of my career, but as a new picture book author, so far only a handful of these have featured picture books I’ve written. A Crow of His Own illustrated by David Hyde … Continue reading
This week I attended the Fay B. Kaigler Children’s Book Festival at the Thad Cochran Center on the University of Southern Mississippi campus in Hattiesburg, MS April 6-8, 2016, where I accepted the Ezra Jack Keats New Writer Honor Award as a … Continue reading