Children & YA | Chapter 16

YA Central?

With four new young-adult titles released this fall alone, Nashville authors are on the leading edge of the biggest news in publishing

By Tina LoTufo | December 19, 2012

December 19, 2012 This fall, four Nashville authors are no doubt hoping their new books will ride the current wave of YA popularity among adults as well as teens. Sci-fi author Myra McEntire’s Timepiece is the second installment of her “Hourglass” time-travel trilogy. In What’s Left of Me, debut novelist (and Vanderbilt undergraduate) Kat Zhang imagines an alternate reality in which “hybrid” humans suffer persecution. C. J. Redwine’s Defiance introduces fantasy-lovers to a land of dangerous creatures and bloody tyranny. And Kathryn Williams turns to the kitchen and the world of reality shows with the delightful Pizza, Love, and Other Stuff That Made Me Famous.

Renovating the Fairy Tale

Mother-daughter duo Alice Randall and Caroline Randall Williams talk with Chapter 16 about fairy tales, writing across generational lines, and their new children’s novel, The Diary of B.B. Bright, Possible Princess

By Emily Choate | December 13, 2012

December 13, 2012 The New York Times bestselling author Alice Randall and her daughter, Caroline Randall Williams, have joined forces to create the fairy-tale world of their first children’s novel, The Diary of B.B. Bright, Possible Princess. As a thirteen-year-old orphaned princess in hiding on fantastical Bee Isle, B.B. Bright faces a gamut of challenges: earning her godmommies’ good opinion, starting her own beeswax candle business, winning her way off the island by finding eight elusive princesses who hold the keys to her identity, and withstanding Bee Isle’s ultimate pass-fail: The Official Princess Test.

History, Lost and Found

Ruta Sepetys recounts the improbable discovery of her Lithuanian family’s “hidden history” in Siberia

By Emily Choate | November 27, 2012

November 27, 2012 In a blog post for The Huffington Post’s books section, Nashville YA novelist Ruta Sepetys describes the winding, unlikely path her family’s hidden stories took to reach her.

London Calling

Opposites attract in Lauren Morrill’s new YA novel

By Tina LoTufo | November 15, 2012

November 15, 2012 When brainy, uptight, rule-following Julia Lichtenstein sets out on her junior-year class trip to London, she can’t wait to soak up the old-world ambiance of historical sites associated with her literary heroes. But that’s before Mrs. Tennison, her teacher and chaperone, alphabetically assigns each student a buddy, and Julia is suddenly saddled with Jason Lippincott, a vulgar, arrogant, rule-breaking jerk. Of course, opposites attract and romance ensues, but as William Shakespeare himself once wrote, “The course of true love never did run smooth.” In Meant To Be, the new YA novel by Maryville native Lauren Morrill, Julia is in for a bumpy ride indeed. Lauren Morrill will discuss Meant to Be at Union Ave. Books in Knoxville on November 16 at 6 p.m.

The Story of a Barn

On the sixtieth anniversary of its publication, Michael Sims talks with NPR about Charlotte’s Web

By Emily Choate | November 9, 2012

November 9, 2012 Crossville, Tennessee, native and author of such books as Adam’s Navel and Apollo’s Fire Michael Sims celebrated the sixtieth anniversary of the publication of E.B. White’s children’s classic Charlotte’s Web by sitting down with NPR to discuss White’s devotion to his beloved characters.

A Brain on Fire

Award-winning author and literacy crusader Mem Fox preaches the importance of reading to children

By Tina LoTufo | October 25, 2012

October 25, 2012 Mem Fox believes passionately that a good book has the power to move a reader “profoundly, one way or another—to laughter or tears, horror or delight, disgust or dismay, fascination or fright. If a book makes children laugh, cry, squeal, shiver, or wriggle and jiggle in some way, it takes up residence in their hearts and stays there.” Inspired by decades of experience as an educator, an award-winning children’s book author, and a parent, Fox considers her most important role to be crusading for the importance of reading aloud to young children, which she believes is an absolutely essential component in a child’s healthy development. On November 5 at 6:15 p.m., Mem Fox will appear at the Nashville Public Library as part of the Salon@615 series. The event is free and open to the public.

Tias and Primas: On Knowing and Loving the Women Who Raise Us

By Prisca Dorcas Mojica Rodríguez, illustrated by Josie Del Castillo
Seal Press
304 pages
$30

“Within these pages, I found my abuela, my tías and my primas — laughing, crying, and nodding alongside me. This book is a gift of understanding, and loving one’s family, even when our families are complicated and painful. It’s a beautiful reminder of the power of storytelling and the profound connection of kinship.”

~ Paola Mendoza, author, organizer and filmmaker