Children & YA

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.

October 5, 2012 The Flint Heart, co-written by Katherine Paterson and her husband, John, reads like a modern retelling of an ancient fairy tale: at the behest of a power-hungry would-be chief, a Stone-Age “mystery man” makes a heart-hardening charm—the Flint Heart—and sells it for thirty-two sheep and thirty-two lambs. What happens next feels deliciously familiar, as all good fairy tales must. Katherine and John Paterson will discuss The Flint Heart at Nashville’s Southern Festival of Books on October 13 at 9:30 a.m. in the War Memorial Auditorium. All festival events are free and open to the public.

September 21, 2012 Colin Meloy, frontman and primary songwriter for the Decemberists, is best known for his darkly ironic sensibility and a penchant for the macabre. These characteristics are on ample display in The Wildwood Chronicles, Meloy’s auspicious venture into the world of children’s fantasy fiction, featuring illustrations by his wife, Carson Ellis. Under Wildwood continues the standard Meloy and Ellis established in the first volume for blending the traditional elements of fantasy fiction with a clever, witty juxtaposition of magical forests and coffee houses frequented by vegan pacifists on bicycles. Meloy and Ellis will appear at the Nashville Children’s Theater on October 1 at 6:15 p.m. This free event is part of the Salon@615 series.